The Rest of Us with Dana Tenille Weekes

Dana Tenille Weekes
  • 5.0 (31)
  • Health & Fitness
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The Rest of Us podcast explores rest as self-liberation for advocates and professionals who are losing themselves to the demands of work, loved ones, friends, strangers, and this dizzying world. The Rest of Us cultivates a community through honest reflections, conversations, and laughter for people willing to embrace rest differently. 

  1. 2d ago ·  Bonus

    Poetic Interlude - Malik Thompson reading "Overture"

    What practices of care do I offer to, and receive from, those I love? In this Poetic Interlude, Malik Thompson reads “Overture,” first published in Hayden’s Ferry Review. Creatives, including poets, show us how to embrace our humanity and act on our truths. We in The Rest of Us community view this as a deep connection to one’s own agency — our definition of rest. Settle into the work of Malik Thompson and even explore your own creativity, which we define as liberatory rest. ABOUT MALIK Malik Thompson (he/they) is a queer African-American person living in Baltimore. Having worked in independent bookstores for many years, he is also the former Co-Chair of OutWrite DC and has taught workshops for the University of Wisconsin-Madison, the Hurston/Wright Foundation, and other organizations. His work has been published in the Cincinnati Review, Denver Quarterly, Hayden’s Ferry Review, and elsewhere. He has received fellowships and residencies from organizations including Cave Canem, Lambda Literary, the Anderson Center, and Monson Arts. Say “hello” to Malik on Instagram @latesummerstar.  You can also visit therestofuspodcast.com to read Malik’s poem and reflection prompt, along with other poets in the Poetic Interlude community. PODCAST TEAM Host, Dana Tenille Weekes Producer, Annabelle Oh Editor, Sagheer Muhammad Content Manager, Annabelle Oh If this episode feels like a message or mirror, feel free to share it with someone who is looking to think about rest differently.  🎙️ Subscribe on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen.  ⭐ Leave a 5-star review. (We are grateful for you doing so.)  Until next time, rest, my friends. Connect with Us Website: www.therestofuspodcast.com  Instagram: @therestofus.podcast@danatenilleweekesSubstack: @therestofuspodcastLinkedIn: Dana Tenille Weekes

  2. 2d ago ·  Bonus

    Poetic Interlude - Tatiana Johnson-Boria reading "The Daughter Becomes Her Mother's Body"

    What is something happening (or not happening) in your life, where you are rushing the pace to force fruition? In this Poetic Interlude, Tatiana Johnson-Boria reads her poem “The Daughter Becomes Her Mother’s Body,” first published in ONLY POEMS. Creatives, including poets, show us how to embrace our humanity and act on our truths. We in The Rest of Us community view this as a deep connection to one’s own agency — our definition of rest. Settle into the work of Tatiana Johnson-Boria and even explore your own creativity, which we define as liberatory rest. ABOUT TATIANA Tatiana Johnson-Boria is the author of Nocturne in Joy, winner of the Julia Ward Howe Book Prize in Poetry. She was raised in Boston, on the unceded land of the Massachusett people, and is an educator, artist, and mother. She’s received fellowships and awards from McCormack Writing Center (formerly known as Tin House), the Massachusetts Cultural Council, The MacDowell Residency, among others. She still lives in Massachusetts with her partner and son. Say “hello” to Tatiana on Instagram @tatianajboria.  You can also visit therestofuspodcast.com to read Tatiana's poem and reflection prompt, along with other featured poets in the Poetic Interlude community. PODCAST TEAM Host, Dana Tenille Weekes Producer, Annabelle Oh Editor, Sagheer Muhammad Content Manager, Annabelle Oh If this episode feels like a message or mirror, feel free to share it with someone who is looking to think about rest differently.  🎙️ Subscribe on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen.  ⭐ Leave a 5-star review. (We are grateful for you doing so.)  Until next time, rest, my friends. Connect with Us Website: www.therestofuspodcast.com  Instagram: @therestofus.podcast@danatenilleweekesSubstack: @therestofuspodcastLinkedIn: Dana Tenille Weekes

  3. 2d ago

    Ep. 34: Don't Deny Your Genius for People's Performative Insecurities

    Do you live alive?  What if you navigated the world knowing you have a genius? In this episode of The Rest of Us, host Dana Tenille Weekes holds space for listeners to (1) let them know they have a genius; and (2) identify and live in their genius. Dana admits that “genius” can feel like a strong, strong word to wear in a society where performative insecurities and, in turn, performative power reign. But She offers reflection questions to help listeners understand that owning their genius is necessary to living alive. Dana also explores the relationship between humbleness and genius, asking listeners, “Do you humble to hide or humble to hold your genius?” WHAT YOU’LL SETTLE INTO Dana’s definition of genius and its connection to living aliveThree reflection questions to help identify your geniusThe difference between ego and genius Humble to hide vs. humble to hold your genius KEY QUOTES & INSIGHTS “We must live to feel alive.” — Ariana Brown, Poet“Nowadays, there is this corrupt idea that the more money you make, the more innovative and genius you are. This is a fallacy.”“You act from your ego when you command attention because you don’t trust yourself.”“You are humble to hide your genius when you foreclose opportunities for people to decide on you.” PODCAST TEAM Host, Dana Tenille Weekes Editor, Sagheer Muhammad If this episode feels like a message or mirror, feel free to share it with someone who is looking to think about rest differently.  🎙️ Subscribe on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen.  ⭐ Leave a 5-star review. (We are grateful for you doing so.)  Until next time, rest, my friends. Connect with Us Website: www.therestofuspodcast.com  Instagram: @therestofus.podcast@danatenilleweekesSubstack: @therestofuspodcastLinkedIn: Dana Tenille Weekes

  4. Sep 21 ·  Bonus

    Poetic Interlude - Amanda Johnston reading "For Loud Women Like Me"

    How do you find honey in the marrow of the night and pass the cup around?  This Poetic Interlude features Amanda Johnston and also celebrates the 20th Anniversary of Torch Literary Arts, an organization established to publish and promote creative writing by Black women. In this Poetic Interlude, Amanda Johnston, Founder of Torch, reads her poem “For Loud Women Like Me,” first published in Callaloo Volume 41 Issue 1. Creatives, including poets, show us how to embrace our humanity and act on our truths. We in The Rest of Us community view this as a deep connection to one’s own agency — our definition of rest.  Settle into the work of Amanda Johnston and even explore your own creativity, which we define as liberatory rest. ABOUT AMANDA Amanda Johnston is a writer, visual artist, and the 61st Poet Laureate of Texas. She is the author of Another Way to Say Enter and editor of the anthology Praisesong for the People: Poems from the Heart and Soul of Texas. Her work has appeared in numerous online and print publications, among them Callaloo, Poetry Magazine, The Moth, The Rumpus, and elsewhere. She has received fellowships, grants, and awards from Cave Canem, The Watermill Center, Academy of American Poets, among others. She is a former Board President of the Cave Canem Foundation and the founder of Torch Literary Arts.  Say “hello” to Amanda on Instagram @poetamandajohnston. Visit Amanda’s website to learn more about her and Praisesong for the People: Poems from the Heart and Soul of Texas, and Torch’s website to learn more about this phenomenal organization and how to get involved or donate. You can also visit therestofuspodcast.com to read Amanda's poem and reflection prompt, along with other featured poets in the Poetic Interlude community. PODCAST TEAM Host, Dana Tenille Weekes Producer, Annabelle Oh Editor, Sagheer Muhammad If this episode feels like a message or mirror, feel free to share it with someone who is looking to think about rest differently.  🎙️ Subscribe on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen.  ⭐ Leave a 5-star review. (We are grateful for you doing so.)  Until next time, rest, my friends. Connect with Us Website: www.therestofuspodcast.com  Instagram: @therestofus.podcast@danatenilleweekesSubstack: @therestofuspodcastLinkedIn: Dana Tenille Weekes

  5. Sep 21 ·  Bonus

    Poetic Interlude - Benin Lemus reading "The Fifth City"

    What are the qualities, obvious and subtle, that show up for you?  This Poetic Interlude features Benin Lemus and also celebrates the 20th Anniversary of Torch Literary Arts, an organization established to publish and promote creative writing by Black women. In this Poetic Interlude, Benin Lemus, a Torch Feature and known poet in the Torch community, reads “The Fifth City,” first published by the Department of Cultural Affairs, City of Los Angeles, as part of their Cultural Trailblazers 2026 artist recognition. Creatives, including poets, show us how to embrace our humanity and act on our truths. We in The Rest of Us community view this as a deep connection to one’s own agency — our definition of rest.  Settle into the work of Benin Lemus and even explore your own creativity, which we define as liberatory rest. ABOUT BENIN Benin Lemus (she/her) is a Los Angeles-based poet, librarian, and educator. Her 2022 debut poetry collection, Dreaming in Mourning, was published by World Stage Press. She was an Inaugural Workshop Fellow with Obsidian Magazine’s O|Sessions: Black Listening—A Performance Master Class, a Pushcart Prize nominee, and received Honorable Mention in the 2022 Furious Flower Poetry Center’s annual competition. Her work has appeared in numerous literary journals, including Callaloo, Consequence, and TORCH Literary Arts Magazine, among others. In 2024, Benin served as the poetry judge for AWP’s Intro Journals Project. She teaches poetry in the UCLA Extension Writers’ Program.  Say “hello” to Benin on Instagram @beninlemus_poet. Visit Benin’s website to learn more about her and Dreaming in Mourning, and Torch’s website to learn more about this phenomenal organization and how to get involved or donate. You can also visit therestofuspodcast.com to read Benin’s poem and reflection prompt, along with other featured poets in the Poetic Interlude community. PODCAST TEAM Host, Dana Tenille Weekes Producer, Annabelle Oh Editor, Sagheer Muhammad If this episode feels like a message or mirror, feel free to share it with someone who is looking to think about rest differently.  🎙️ Subscribe on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen.  ⭐ Leave a 5-star review. (We are grateful for you doing so.)  Until next time, rest, my friends. Connect with Us Website: www.therestofuspodcast.com  Instagram: @therestofus.podcast@danatenilleweekesSubstack: @therestofuspodcastLinkedIn: Dana Tenille Weekes

  6. Sep 21

    Ep. 33: Systems Won't Save You, So Know When to Leave

    Have you felt you’ve met milestones in your life that, as a child, people implied were supposed to be mountaintops, but they aren't? If you’re not saying, “No,” then this episode is for you. In this episode of The Rest of Us, host Dana Tenille Weekes asks three questions for listeners who have a choice to no longer succeed without surviving, which she calls thriving. She poses these questions to help you determine whether you’re in a system you must leave, rather than pretending it is working for you while you're in unbearable exhaustion. Dana curated this episode to remind listeners that they are likely relying on too many institutions and society-sourced systems (on which our workplaces are built) to define their worth.  And for listeners who have the choice to succeed without surviving, Dana challenges them with reflection questions to start honest conversations with themselves. Because, as she says, if you’re waiting for the system to validate or save you, it won’t.  WHAT YOU’LL SETTLE INTO How systems prioritize your brand over your personhood.How systems use productivity as a proxy for accountability.How resilience can be a coded word for accommodation.Three reflection prompts to foster an honest conversation with yourself about whether you’re in a system that requires you to survive or thrive. KEY QUOTES & INSIGHTS “Systems and institutions will always have clear plans — strategies, metrics, and sufficient resources — for what they prioritize and want to invest in. So if there is an absence of such, the question is: what absence is constantly hindering your growth and advancement?”“What we are seeing is that leadership is defined by profits and performative metrics, rather than true problem-solving. And the result is that these leaders can lead without accountability, because they treat productivity as the same thing. It's not.”“Some organizations are asking you to be resilient to problems they create and don’t want to solve.” PODCAST TEAM Host, Dana Tenille Weekes Editor, Sagheer Muhammad If this episode feels like a message or mirror, feel free to share it with someone who is looking to think about rest differently.  🎙️ Subscribe on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen.  ⭐ Leave a 5-star review. (We are grateful for you doing so.)  Until next time, rest, my friends. Connect with Us Website: www.therestofuspodcast.com  Instagram: @therestofus.podcast@danatenilleweekesSubstack: @therestofuspodcastLinkedIn: Dana Tenille Weekes

  7. Sep 7 ·  Bonus

    Poetic Interlude - Mary McAfoose reading "Just because you can"

    What do you want to do with your life that has been given breath?  In this Poetic Interlude, Mary McAfoose reads her poem “Just because you can.” Creatives, including poets, show us how to embrace our humanity and act on our truths. We in The Rest of Us community view this as a deep connection to one’s own agency — our definition of rest.  Settle into the work of Mary McAfoose and even explore your own creativity, which we define as liberatory rest. ABOUT MARY Mary McAfoose (she/her) is a poet based in Seattle, on land of the Duwamish. She is obsessed with making poetry relatable and accessible and seeks to further connect people with each other (and themselves) through writing. She is a member of Common Area Maintenance (CAM)’s writing leadership team, dedicated to cultivating a creative community in Seattle. Her poems have been published in Room, Prosetrics, Ink in Thirds, and elsewhere. Mary holds an electrical engineering degree, and when not working corporate tech jobs, she enjoys writing dangerous truths, reading, and playing video games. Say “hello” to Mary on Instagram @moose_a_foose. You can also visit therestofuspodcast.com to read Mary's poem and reflection prompt, along with other featured poets in the Poetic Interlude community. PODCAST TEAM Host, Dana Tenille Weekes Producer, Annabelle Oh If this episode feels like a message or mirror, feel free to share it with someone who is looking to think about rest differently.  🎙️ Subscribe on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen.  ⭐ Leave a 5-star review. (We are grateful for you doing so.)  Until next time, rest, my friends. Connect with Us Website: www.therestofuspodcast.com  Instagram: @therestofus.podcast@danatenilleweekesSubstack: @therestofuspodcastLinkedIn: Dana Tenille Weekes

  8. Sep 7 ·  Bonus

    Poetic Interlude - Rosa Castellano reading "A GIRL THE COLOR OF A CRACKED WINDSHIELD WAITS WITH HER SISTERS AND BROTHERS IN A TUB—"

    Think of a time when you wanted or needed to disappear into the waiting, to collapse time, and in the “genderless dark,” dream. What do you become? In this Poetic Interlude, Rosa Castellano reads her poem “A GIRL THE COLOR OF A CRACKED WINDSHIELD WAITS WITH HER SISTERS AND BROTHERS IN A TUB—” from her debut poetry collection All Is The Telling. Creatives, including poets, show us how to embrace our humanity and act on our truths. We in The Rest of Us community view this as a deep connection to one’s own agency — our definition of rest.  Settle into the work of Rosa Castellano and even explore your own creativity, which we define as liberatory rest. ABOUT ROSA Newly appointed Poet Laureate of Richmond, VA, Rosa Castellano is the Literary Arts Director for Sundress Publications and co-founder of RVA Poetry Fest. Her writing appears in Poetry Northwest, Guernica, Bomb, Write or Die, and Lit Hub, among others. Her debut poetry collection, All is the Telling, is available now from Diode Editions. Originally from Tampa, FL, she happily calls Richmond, VA home. Say “hello” to Rosa on Instagram @hornsbyrk. You can also visit therestofuspodcast.com to read Rosa's poem and reflection prompt, along with other featured poets in the Poetic Interlude community. PODCAST TEAM Host, Dana Tenille Weekes Producer, Annabelle Oh Editor, Sagheer Muhammad Content Manager, Annabelle Oh If this episode feels like a message or mirror, feel free to share it with someone who is looking to think about rest differently.  🎙️ Subscribe on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen.  ⭐ Leave a 5-star review. (We are grateful for you doing so.)  Until next time, rest, my friends. Connect with Us Website: www.therestofuspodcast.com  Instagram: @therestofus.podcast@danatenilleweekesSubstack: @therestofuspodcastLinkedIn: Dana Tenille Weekes

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The Rest of Us podcast explores rest as self-liberation for advocates and professionals who are losing themselves to the demands of work, loved ones, friends, strangers, and this dizzying world. The Rest of Us cultivates a community through honest reflections, conversations, and laughter for people willing to embrace rest differently. 

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