Timothy of Florida

December 06, 2009

Well, I was sorry last night to learn that Tim Tebow, unquestionably the most beloved young man in the state of Florida, will not be leading his Gators to a third national championship game. I am breaking with long family tradition in feeling sorry; we are Penn State fans, and adhere to a certain hierarchy of hate, according to which Florida has long been pretty low down on the list -- or near the top, depending on how you want to look at it.

Nevertheless, I am fascinated by the Tim Tebow phenomenon. It is true that he is a talented quarterback, and anybody who brings two national championships home is going to be treated like a prince. But sports allegiances do not come within a hundred miles of explaining why people love him so much. No doubt there are visitors to this site who can fill in the details, but from what I gather (and sports reporters these days are notoriously unwilling to write about such things, as any number of people like Kurt Warner and Albert Pujols will testify), Tebow is the homeschooled son of Christian missionaries. He won't ever be President of the United States, because he was born in the Philippines, where his father still works, and where he himself has gone many times to assist as a missionary. His mother apparently was advised by Filipino doctors to abort him, because the placenta had gotten detached; they told her that the child would certainly die, and that her own life would be in grave danger. I am not sure of the specifics of the medical situation. Suffice it to say that she turned the doctors down and put her life, and her baby's life, in the hands of God. Timothy Tebow was born, rather long of limb and skinny, but healthy. His body shows no signs of ever having been undernourished: he is six feet five inches, upwards of 250 pounds. the rest image by Doug Kensrue