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About Akilah

 I was introduced to poetry in the third grade. I wrote my first poem that year too.  

“The Green Thing.” 

     I enjoyed telling a story and making it rhyme, expressing what I was feeling, having to think in a different way, and being able to say so much with so few words. I was hooked—and most influenced by the Harlem Renaissance era. Gwendolyn Brooks, Langston Hughes, Zora Neale Hurston, Paul Laurence Dunbar, Dr. Margaret Burroughs. Sonia Sanchez. Those are the poets I grew up reading.  

     In 7th grade, my classmates and I performed poetry at the DuSable Museum of African-American History (named after Jean Baptiste Pointe DuSable, the Black man who founded Chicago). I’d prepare my best pieces and practice, practice, practice. I loved it.

      It’s one thing to hear someone read a poem as part of the curriculum, but it’s an entirely different experience learning from someone who’s passionate about what they’re teaching. My teachers LOVED poetry, and their passion spilled over.

      There’s a book called You Better Believe It, featuring Black poets from around the world. I discovered it in 7th grade and it’s one of my bibles ’til this day. Poetry is as therapeutic as it is transformative.

      Fast forward to 2014. I woke up one morning and wrote a haiku:

 And Then The Sun Rose

And The Darkness Turned to Light

And my Soul was Eased

      That haiku became a book, and the feedback signaled that it was time to share those written reflections in a more tangible medium. Thus, the Then The Sun Rose Women’s Retreat began.

 About Then The Sun Rose

      It all started with a journey to living a more self-full life, inner reflection and an accumulation of education, experiences and life to arrive at a beautiful understanding about the beauty of life and how true balance is key. After years of procrastinating I published a book. Book reviews suggested that it was time to materialize the space to collectively experience beautiful sunrises.

      I used my previous experience of bringing women together and leaned on their trust in me to create a space that was free of judgement but full of healing.

     We've all had those moments where we knew it was time for a change, a time to look within and to truly learn to love You! With that understanding, a new epiphany arose; it was time to offer services in addition to our Retreats. We are happy to now offer some of the same services that women who attend the retreats receive but on a more individualized basis. 

     Stop by our Services page and book an appointment. By all means, join us at a Retreat or any of our other outings. No matter where you meet me or those affiliated with me, the goal will always be Beautiful Sunrises. 

Akilah Sunrise...

P.S.: Before you go, check out our photo gallery, videos from our Retreats, and a few messages from my Sisters about Womanhood! We love what we do and it shows.

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