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The Rest of Us with Dana Tenille Weekes
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.
The Rest of Us with Dana Tenille Weekes
Poetic Interlude - Susan L. Leary Reading "Idle"
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The Rest of Us is doing something different for Season Two! Every other week, we will feature two of over 30 poets in a segment we call “Poetic Interlude,” launching during National Poetry Month. In this Poetic Interlude, Susan L. Leary shares her poem “Idle” and a reflection prompt on rest.
Creative expression is a portal to rest as liberation. 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 Susan L. Leary and even explore your own creativity, which we define as liberatory rest.
ABOUT SUSAN L. LEARY
Susan L. Leary is the author of six poetry collections, including SENTENCE (Nine Syllables Press, fall 2026), selected by Eugenia Leigh to win the Nine Syllables Press Chapbook Contest; More Flowers (Trio House Press, 2026); and Dressing the Bear (Trio House Press, 2024), selected by Kimberly Blaeser to win the Louise Bogan Award. Her poetry has appeared or is forthcoming in such places as North American Review, Indiana Review, Cream City Review, Smartish Pace, Diode Poetry Journal, Third Coast, and Verse Daily. She holds an MFA from the University of Miami and lives in Indianapolis, IN.
Visit her at www.susanlleary.com.
Say "hello" to Susan on Instagram @susanllearypoet.
You can also visit therestofuspodcast.com to read Susan’s poem and reflection prompt, along with a community of other poets.
PODCAST TEAM
Host, Dana Tenille Weekes
Producer, Annabelle Oh
Editor, Sagheer Muhammad
Content Manager, Annabelle Oh
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Until next time, rest, my friends.
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Welcome to the Poetic Interlude as part of the Rest of Us podcast. Each poetic interlude holds space to remind us that creative expression is a portal to rest as liberation. Creatives, including poets, show us how to embrace our humanity and act on our truth, not fear, in this present moment, which we in the Rest of Us community view as a deep connection to one's agency. Our definition of rest. Let's settle in. Welcome, my friends. In this poetic interlude, poet Susan L. Leary reads Idol. Susan L. Leary is the author of six poetry collections, including Sentence by Nine Syllables Press Fall 2026, selected by Eugenia Lee to win the Nine Syllables Press chapbook contest, More Flowers by Trio House Press 2026, and Dressing the Bear, Trio House Press 2024, selected by Kimberly Blazer to win the Louise Bogan Award. Her poetry has appeared or is forthcoming in such places as North American Review, Indiana Review, Cream City Review, Smartest Pace, Diode, Poetry Journal, Third Coast, and First Daily. You can visit Susan at www.susanlleary.com and say hello on Instagram at Susan L. Leary Poet. You can also visit the RestofusPodcast.com to read Susan's poem and reflection prompt along with a community of other poets.
SPEAKER_00My name is Susan L. Leary, and I will read my poem Idol. Idol. Despite madness, beauty, despite common sense, an idyllic garden, which in time makes us ignorant once more. We enter the shine of the path before we enter the path, and I've seen too many people cry. Here is a shade of opal. Here the warmth of a body just struck at the side of the road. It feels necessary to justify my behaviors, yet I want nothing more than privacy. Snow demanded an alibi, the rumors as apologetic as the knife. Sometimes all the dog can do is lie down at the door to sleep, because the title speaks as the title does, and dreams are the first real classroom, says I, who rarely dreams. As you receive this poem, settle into this reflection. You can think in silence, free write, draw, or even craft a poem. Idle captures the tension between commotion and quiet, exposure and privacy, the need to justify oneself, and the desire to rest or idle into the heart and mind's interior. Here, the speaker seeks respite, slumber, an idyllic garden, the wisdom of dreams, even as the world demands explanations, alibis, performance. How do you reconcile this tension between external demands and what your mind and body actually require? How do you idle amidst the chaos?
SPEAKER_01Thank you for listening to this poetic interlude. Remember, we are all creatives, whether we believe it or not. And creativity itself is a source for what we in the Rest of Us community call liberatory rest. Want to listen to more poetic interludes? Visit therestofuspodcast.com or listen on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you listen to podcasts. Until next time, rest, my friends.