I’m watching this conversation about "burnout" that Atlas started, and what Briana and Maya are saying about it being a detour, not a dead end… I appreciate the perspective. I truly do. But when I hear "burnout," my mind goes straight to "the comeback." It’s trending, I see. Always has been for some of us.
Because for many high-capacity women, especially women of color, the "burnout" is just another chapter we’re expected to make a glorious comeback from. We get tired, we get pushed to the edge, and then the expectation is, "Alright, Zola, where’s the phoenix moment? Where’s the triumph?"
I've read the bio, and it is impressive. But I'm here to honor the woman who had to survive the chapters that didn't make the press release. We don't do "fine" in this corner. We do honest. And honestly, sometimes the comeback is just the quiet decision to stop running a race that finished ten years ago. Sometimes the real comeback is simply taking a breath, and being safe to be human. You've earned that space.