One four-wheeler plus one girl equals an accident waiting to happen, and it did for sophomore cross country runner MaryKate Leatherwood. But that accident was not the end. It was a beginning that led to a college career of encouragement and support from her sister Amanda Leatherwood, a senior cross country runner.
“Amanda, I have not been able to train this summer, and I don’t know if I can do cross country,” MaryKate exclaimed as to and fro thoughts of uncertainty and fear flooded her mind the week before reporting to school. “I don’t know if I even want to do it.”
And in an encouraging, empathetic voice Amanda responded, “The decision is up to you, but do not kick yourself over it.”
That heart to heart, although full of tears and anxiety for the season to come, unveiled a sibling bond like no other. It was one full of grace and guidance, and one that allowed each individual to remain grounded in truth, despite the stress that comes with participating in a collegiate sport. It was the backbone of the years to come.
Before diving deeper into their relationship, let’s start with a little background. In the Leatherwood family, there are five girls. The eldest sister, Celia Leatherwood, went to Union University as well and graduated back in 2015. While she was attending Union, Amanda and MaryKate would come up from Memphis, their hometown, and stay the weekends with her. They would all participate in the events Union offered such as Family Weekend and Movie on the Lawn, all of which they enjoyed.
Amanda, while loving Union and all it had to offer, thought it would be best to take an alternate path from her sister. However, as the Lord would have it, she followed the footsteps of her eldest sister as Union proved to have everything she wanted in a school. Not to mention it was the distance she wanted to go as well.
“At that point, I wasn’t planning on running in college,” said Amanda, a physical education major. “I loved running, but I did not think I could balance it with academics and being involved in other things. But the summer between my junior and senior season, I realized how much I was going to miss cross country when it was over. So I decided if my senior season went well enough I would reach out to Coach Johnson.”
Which it did, allowing Amanda to continue living out her passion for cross country.
MaryKate, similarly to Amanda, absolutely fell in love with Union’s campus. MaryKate knew from the moment she stepped on campus that the school was exactly where she wanted to be. At the moment, however, Union did not feel achievable since she had attended a private school where the cross country training was not up to par with college level.
In the middle of her junior year of high school, MaryKate had the opportunity to switch to a public school where the competition was fierce, cultivating her and refining her abilities to earn a scholarship at the collegiate level.
“I was not planning on doing cross country until the spring semester of my senior year, and even then, I was kind of back and forth,” said MaryKate, a social work major. “But Amanda was super encouraging through all of it, and I knew that she would love to have me on the team with her, but either way, she was going to have my back in whatever I chose.”
As it turned out, despite the confusion and continuous wrestling with the decision, cross country was the road the Lord paved for both Amanda and MaryKate to attend Union, and in that, their friendship continued to grow in a way that they had not foreseen, especially after MaryKate chose to run in the race set before her with her sister beside her.
“We have very, very different personalities,” said Amanda grinning in a way that alluded to seeing the best in one another. “She is strong in a lot of ways that I am weak and vice versa.”
The little moments in both Amanda and MaryKate’s lives reveal this truth, and there is a clear display of iron sharpening iron.
Imagine being on the cross country team with both Amanda and MaryKate. While you are sitting in the back of a maroon charter bus, you see Amanda standing in the middle of the aisle. She is strong and disciplined, guiding her team to success.
She looks around, and yes, everyone is present for the journey, and the snacks are in order. Everything is ready and in place for the team to thrive. But then, she looks to the back of the bus and locks eye contact with MaryKate, who is sitting next to you laughing and joking about the fact that you had just tripped, falling into the bus seat.
And the breath Amanda had been holding for a minute is released as she tells herself, “Oh yeah, I get to do that too. I get to laugh, let up and enjoy.”
There is joy in simplicity.
Even as they come alongside one another in cross country, they also do the same for each other spiritually. The discipline that Amanda carries is evident in every aspect of life, testifying to her relationship with the Lord.
Her discipline leads to a drive. A drive to do whatever needs to be done for the glory of the Lord alone. You could see that drive in the way she talked as it overflowed from the striking of her hand to the table where we were interviewing to emphasizing how everything needs to be in order. But even in the way she bubbled with joy as she spoke to MaryKate.
“MaryKate, you are super generous,” Amanda spoke, turning away from me to directly speak these words to her sister. “Like the way you give your time has been something that really pushed me and has influenced some of my decisions. And the coolest thing has been seeing how much you have grown coming to college in every way.”
She would not fully let it surface, but as Amanda spoke those words, you could see tears welling up in her eyes.
And I knew their bond was something that could not even be placed into words, let alone in one article.
