Making It Back To The Midwest
Contracts come and go. This is a guarantee in our lives, and this is the point we have found ourselves in. We have really enjoyed our time in the desert. Buckeye is a really nice and mellow area of the Phoenix Valley. There will be many things that we miss about it. Next up is going to be a sixteen week contract in Fort Smith, Arkansas. We are swapping out the blistering desert heat, for the hot and humid heat of the south. One thing is for certain, and that is we the fact we will be close to family, which is really important right now!
MIle: 39, 554
Quote of the Blog: “Light precedes every transition. Whether at the end of a tunnel, through a crack in the door or the flash of an idea, it is always there, heralding a new beginning.” – Theresa Tsalaky
Song of the Blog: “Season of the Sticks” - Noah Kahan
One Last Video Of The Jets ✌️
Right now, work, travel and adventure are not really on the front of our minds. Right now, Amity’s sister is all that is on our minds. We left Arizona a week early to get back to Kansas City as fast as we could. Autumn’s fight with metastatic breast cancer made a significant turn for the worst. Amity needed to get back, so we did exactly that. Two long days of driving, and we were there. We did get to see some beautiful things along the way, such as Petrified Forest National Park and the mountains/rock features in New Mexico are insane!
Getting to Kansas City was bittersweet. We knew we are going into seeing Autumn in her worst, but we were nonetheless happy to be present with her and there for the kids. Life is tricky experience. Watching someone like Autumn be so strong and resilient for so long was one of the most inspiring things we have experienced. That is what makes this all so much more tragic. Seeing Andy next to her for everything has also be something to be inspired by. Not many men would be able to do what he has be able to so willingly do, and still have the energy to laugh and tell you a story about his day. He has truly exemplified what it means to be a husband.
With the unfortunate expectation, Autumn succumbed to her battles with cancer and passed away on April 9th, 2024. Our lives are forever changed. We will forever be stuck with the void that has been left with her passing. Losing a loved one is one of the worst experiences, which can only be outdone by losing a family member. We will look to our family and our strengths to help us mend, morn and rebuild for some time to come.
We attended her funeral services, which included a Visitation, Rosary, Funeral Mass and a Grave Site Burial. All of this took place over two days at the St. Michael’s of the Archangel Catholic Parish, which is a really beautiful facility. We are forever grateful for the kind people that work at the parish, who have been so kind and caring for the Early family. Autumn’s casket was laid to rest at a really beautiful, quiet and peaceful site in the countryside about 20 minutes outside of their home. She is at the Queen of the Holy Rosary Church, which is in Miami county in Kansas. She always loved to travel to Miami (may it be a much different warmer Miami), we have found some solace in this.
We spent some time around the Early household to help in any way we could. We got to enjoy the solar eclipse, some epic track performances from Baylor, a beautiful dance recital from Finely & Briley’s first prom night. I was great to spend a little time with them before making our way up to Kirksville for a couple nights. We split our time between Mike & Karen’s house and Julie & Jeff’s house. They are both so entertaining and different in so many ways. We love you both, and we were very happy to spend some time with you all before we made our move south! Our biggest need was to change out some of our clothing. We don’t travel with much, so we end up wearing the same things over and over, so a swap out was needed.
As quick as we landed in Kirksville, we were headed out. I had to get to Springfield, MO for the night, because the next morning I was planning on running a marathon. I had initially planned on running one on the 20th, but with everything going on in life I forgot to sign up and missed out on that one. So we are not here a week later on the 27th doing the Frisco Railroad Run Marathon. I planned to do this run as a fundraising and supporter for Autumn and her battles with Metastatic Breast Cancer, but is has now turned into a memorial run for her. I was still able to raise just under $2000 for METAVIVOR, which is an organization that is funding research, treatment and community support for those battling Metastatic Breast Cancer.
I will say this right now, it doesn’t matter how much training you do. Running 26.2 miles is a really hard thing to do. At any age, and at any fitness level! I am very grateful to have taken my training very seriously. It did really help, and I was able to push through moments where I wanted to give up because I knew I had more left in me. I was also motivated by the entire Early, Sparks and Smith family. Amity was there to be very supportive and help me along the way. With only five miles left to go, we celebrated how good I was doing. I immediately hit a wall after seeing her. I came into the finish line at 4:19:54 and 100% exhausted! I couldn’t have been prouder of myself in that moment! Something I would have never thought to have accomplished was now something that was in my past as a core memory forever! It truly has been a high and low kind of month!
Following the race, we hopped into the car and instantly headed southbound towards Fort Smith, Arkansas. We have done one trip to Arkansas before (see our story HERE). This has given us a little bit of knowledge about what we are getting ourselves into. Amity’s contract is at a Pediatric Physical Therapy clinic. This means she will be spending the next four months working with young kids to help them get moving and stronger! We have many adventures already in our minds for our time in Arkansas. Right now, all I want to do is get out of the car. Lay on a couch and rest my legs. 16 weeks in Arkansas, starting now!