Retreat Life & Reflection
I’ve been sitting with a heavy heart since reading on social media the news of Quita Cole’s passing. I didn’t know her at all, but her story immediately gripped me. At only 40 years old, Quita was an unstoppable entrepreneur — a woman who poured her whole self into building her dreams. She recently shared online that she needed rest, announcing she would take just three days off to recharge. But tragically, she never woke up.
When I read her words, I saw myself. So many of us who build, lead, and give our all to our communities have worn those same shoes. We run at full speed, pushing through the exhaustion, whispering to ourselves that we’ll slow down “one day.” We wear our drive like armor, but underneath it, our bodies and our spirits are crying out for care.
I, too, learned this the hard way. There was a time when I ignored the small signals, dismissing headaches, fatigue, and anxiety as just the cost of doing meaningful work. Eventually, it caught up with me, manifesting as health issues that forced me to confront what I had been avoiding: rest is not optional. It is not a luxury. It is an urgent necessity.
When Quita publicly declared she was taking a break, she was making an act of courage and reclamation. But it shouldn’t take reaching the edge of collapse for us to feel entitled to step away. We deserve our rest, and we need to take it before it’s too late.
We are living in a culture that glorifies grind and hustle, especially for entrepreneurs and community leaders of color. We’re told that if we just work a little harder, sleep a little less, we can finally “make it.” But at what cost?
Rest isn’t something to earn after we’ve achieved everything on our list. Rest is the foundation that makes our work possible and sustainable. It’s how we replenish the energy to keep dreaming, creating, and loving.
This is why spaces like Ayoku Healing Retreat Center exist. Ayoku is more than a beautiful place in middle Tennessee. It is a sanctuary intentionally designed for people like us. For those who lead, nurture, and advocate, often without pausing to nurture ourselves.
At Ayoku, rest is not an afterthought. It is central. The retreat offers culturally affirming, holistic healing practices — from yoga and breathwork to art therapy and community gardening. It’s a place to reconnect with your body, your spirit, and your joy.
Imagine waking up surrounded by nature, free from the buzzing of deadlines and constant notifications. Here, you’re invited to breathe deeply, to move slowly, and to be cared for as deeply as you care for others. You’re reminded that joy is not something you have to postpone; it’s something you can reclaim right now.
Quita’s story reminds us that tomorrow is not promised. The urgency of caring for ourselves cannot wait until “after the next project,” “after this quarter,” or “after I reach that milestone.” We have to choose ourselves today.
Rest is an act of love for ourselves and our communities. When we are well, we are better able to serve, to lead, to create. We become living testaments to the belief that we are worthy, not because of what we produce, but because of who we are.
If you’re reading this and feeling the weight of exhaustion, please hear me: you do not have to do it alone. Ayoku is here to hold you, to remind you that your humanity matters, and to help you restore the joy that remains inside you, waiting to be nurtured.
So let’s make a commitment to ourselves and to each other. Let’s make rest non-negotiable. Let’s hold each other accountable. And let’s do it now — not when our bodies force us to, but because we deserve it.
At Ayoku, the invitation is always open. Come, rest, heal, and remember: your joy remains.
