They say that athletics teach you valuable skills about life. We’ve all heard the analogy of life being like a soccer or football game, and those of us who play sports have disconcertingly found it to be true.
But perhaps most importantly, athletics give us valuable opportunities, and I had one today.
When I showed up for conditioning this afternoon after school, I went about doing leg warm-ups and exercises as usual. Fifteen minutes into my workout, however, I simply couldn’t keep my eyes away from the pair of extremely built and very professional-looking athletes working with a trainer next to me. The man on the left looked like—but he couldn’t be….
But it was.
It was Tim Tebow. Four feet away from me doing ladder drills and monster walks not unlike the ones I do for tennis was the man who has, through charisma and infamy alike, charmed his way to a top tier of football fame. Naturally, I became ridiculously excited and felt the rapidly growing need to gawk.
You see, at the place where I do conditioning, it is not unusual to see professional athletes training together and preparing for competition; I’ve trained next to Broncos, UFC fighters, and pro swimmers and the best part about it is that it does not feel awkward until you look at the jersey or photograph signed on the wall and realize that the person sweating next to you has millions of results come up on Google every two seconds that someone types in their name. (Aside from this Awkwardness and AWE,) it is fascinating to work next to these amazing athletes and see them in person—“in the sweat”, as they say J.
So between sets and water breaks I peeked at Tim Tebow and his friend out of the corner of my eye, in my best attempt to not miss anything without being flagrantly rude and clingy.
I learned three things about Tebow today. First, he’s a really nice guy. We’ve all heard his praise, and compliments about his character pervade many analyses and commentaries (he’s a good team leader, he inspires everyone else, he’s a good guy…). He’s also a very decent person. I do not know him personally, but today he was polite, kind, supportive, and funny—which is quite impressive, considering I was only within earshot for an hour and that the dialogue was exchanged between agility and strength drills. He was supportive of his friend, polite to me, a complete stranger, and quite personable. I can see why the Broncos hired him; I’d hire him! So kudos to you, Tebow!
Second, he’s much cuter in person. I do feel slightly strange writing this now that I’ve spoken with him face to face and seen him in person, but I must tell it to you, because it is true! This is not to say that he’s a disaster on screen (he most certainly is not), but it holds true that nothing can match up to the real thing. He’s got a good smile, a good build (don’t we all know it?), and a good aura, if I can say that without sounding like a palm reader. Main point to this: he looks good, and has a good feeling about him, too. (let's face it: anyone who can pull off Bronco's orange well is a hero. Period.)
And third: he’s friendly! I don’t know what I expected (actually I do—I didn’t expect anything, much less to meet him), but Tebow’s quite amicable and comfortable. He even started a conversation with me (yes, I’m not ashamed to admit that I couldn’t believe it), asking how my workout was!
What I’m trying to show here is what I realized today after my workout with Tebow. I’d only thought of him as the quarterback who tebows more often than he throws. However, I now realize that that is only one way to look at it. This man’s a good person, really! He deserves a bit more than the acerbic remarks about throwing and fourth quarters (I’ll admit I’ve even offered some of these—but I’ll try not to anymore!), and more than the craze that wavers on fanaticism from some especially religious sports fans. We need to realize that this guy really does have it going for him; he’s got the attitude, the looks, and the character to be a great leader and a great person at the same time—and I had the opportunity to realize this a few hours ago.
And while I could go sappy and explain how I’ve now experienced a life change, I won’t.
But I will say that I’ve just become a Tebow fan. So congrats, Tebow! I’ve never had a favorite football player before, but now you’re it. Didn’t I pick a good one?
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