Two Poems

Benjamin Bagocius

Three Wise Men

People call us magicians

Magic? We just change perspectives

Watch us move
from east to west,
from walking to pausing,
from standing to kneeling

before a secret you hide
in a shack

We know you can’t believe it

We turn doubt into wonder
by shifting your concentration to a star
Our wand is poetry

You see nothing but darkness?
Look again at the star we just mentioned

If that doesn’t do the trick
we open incense
Myrrh is our backup

Clouds of scent circle under your nose

: poof :

Your inconceivable life,
the one you hide away and do not want

: inhale : exhale :

is the savior

I Didn’t Do Gay Thirties Right

I Gilgameshed

The temple’s stone steps
brought me to pillar

and archway, where I paused
to witness silent green

and purple and gold lives
climbing courtyard walls

to escape

I entered

About the Author

Benjamin Bagocius, Ph.D., MFA, writes and teaches broadly across literature, spirituality, and queer thought. He is associate professor of the humanities with Bard Early Colleges, and his first book of poetry, The Canaanite Woman, was published in summer 2022. Ben's second book of poetry, "The Gospel According to B.," is slated for publication in 2024. His poetry, essays, and academic articles appear in a range of venues, including On Being, The Other Journal, Modernism/modernity, and others. Ben is founding director of the Institute for Spiritual Poetry, which hosts writing workshops, a journal, and other events. Reach out and learn more at BenjaminBagocius.com and InstituteForSpiritualPoetry.com.