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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 - Gauri Awasthi reading "Prayer from a Non-Believer"
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How is liberation possible in life and death? In this Poetic Interlude, Gauri Awasthi reads her poem "Prayer from a Non-Believer" in her debut poetry collection Mother Wound (Trio House Press, October 2026).
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 Gauri Awasthi and even explore your own creativity, which we define as liberatory rest.
ABOUT GAURI
Gauri Awasthi (she/her), born in Kanpur, India, is a multidisciplinary artist who is based in New York City. She has won fellowships from Yaddo, the Hambidge Center, Hedgebrook, the Bread Loaf Writers’ Conference, Djerassi, and the Sundress Academy for the Arts. Her writing has been published in Best New Poets 2023, Quarterly West, Notre Dame Review, The Rumpus, Buzzfeed, and others.
Her debut poetry collection, Mother Wound, is forthcoming from Trio House Press in 2026.
WEBSITE: www.gauriawasthi.com
PUBLICATION: Mother Wound (Trio House Press, October 2026)
Say “hello” to Gauri on Instagram @gauriawasthi.
You can also visit therestofuspodcast.com to read Gauri'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
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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. She has won fellowships from Yaddo, the Hambridge Center, Hetchbrook, the Breadloaf Writers Conference, Jernasi, and the Sundress Academy for the Arts. Her writing has been published in Best New Poets 2023, Quarterly West, Notre Dame Review, The Rumpus, BuzzFeed, and others. I'm so excited about this because her debut poetry collection, Mother Wound, is forthcoming from Trio House Press in October 2026. But my friends, you can pre-order it now at Trio House Press. Say hello to Gori on Instagram at G-A-U-R-I-A-W-A-S-T-H-I. You can visit goriaswathi.com to learn more about her. And you can also visit the Restofus Podcast.com to read Gori's poem and reflection prompt along with other poets in the poetic interlude community. Let's settle in.
SPEAKER_00My name is Gori Awasi, and I will read my poem Prayer from a Non-Believer. Prayer from a Non-Believer after Kabir Das. I turn to Kabir again, dear God, let me be a Kafir in all my ways. Let me undo dear mother who will not grow out of me. Amma asks, if you love someone, won't you set them free? Is loving someone not enough to set them free? I ask, who will be set free? It's my fault. I think of poems as prayers. The boy I love says Kabir was separated from Islam, so his songs could be tuned to the Hindu burning incense sticks. My mind blooms with my favorite story. Where Kabir the poet, Kafir and Saint, dies. What he didn't get in life, he finds in death. A mystic weaving garlands is owed by both Hindus and Muslims as a child of their own. On the banks of the holy river, they quarrel about his body, bury or burn, burn or bury, swearing to fight death with blood. But when the sun spills the sky orange, his body dries to flowers. A shroud of bogan villas. They bash them in equal halves burn some, bury some. The boy I love tells me, if I marry him, I will not be buried, he will not be burned. The question he asks me why can't our bodies turn to flowers too? You smell like a rush of night jasmines. As you receive this poem, settle into this reflection. You can think in silence, free write, draw, or even craft a poem. Rest as liberation is central to this work. In laying someone to rest, the question of religion or any other thoughts that plague their existence comes back to the center. In one way, this poem asks you, how is liberation possible in life and death?
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.