Spiritual Misfits Podcast · Meeting Ground

Words for Those Who Wander (Poetry by Will Small & Boy Renaissance)

August 30, 2025·42 min·3 clips

Will Small reveals how the world is always ending for someone in his poem 'The Apocalypse Next Door'.

This episode features poetry readings from a live event called "Words for Those Who Wander," hosted by Will Small of the Spiritual Misfits Podcast and guest poet Boy Renaissance. Will Small is a poet and host exploring fringe faith experiences, while Boy Renaissance is an anonymous poet sharing work on identity and deconstruction. The event was held at West End Uniting Church in Brisbane, facilitated by minister Erin and in collaboration with the "On the Way" podcast. Will opens with "Advice for a Successful Business," a satirical poem critiquing hustle culture and personal branding. He follows with "The Apocalypse Next Door," which observes that personal crises and societal injustices constitute ongoing, localized apocalypses. Boy Renaissance shares a creation poem celebrating color and divinity, describing God weaving light and celestial bodies. Their poem "God is Non-Binary" portrays a dialogue with God about gender identity, rejecting a binary body assignment. Another poem, "A Letter to the Shame That Made Its Home in My Body," addresses trauma from religious rejection of queer love. Boy Renaissance concludes with "Lycaenidae Warrior," an exhortation to rise from depression and "conjure colour" again. Will shares a poem for his two-year-old son, Emery, contrasting a child's innocence with the complexities of politics and economics. He performs "I used to know all the right arguments," an apology to queer listeners for historical church exclusion and a call for full inclusion. Will tests a new, previously unshared poem depicting a mutual crisis of faith between himself and a personified God who declares, "I don't give a shit if you believe in me or not." He finishes with "For Leo," a piece advising his son to be "furiously gentle" and "enormously small." A surprising moment is God's declaration in Will's poem that belief is "overrated" and the real issue is whether humans "walk as if you walk on God." Boy Renaissance's depiction of God having pronouns of "love laughter and sky" offers a non-traditional, expansive theological image. The idea that "the world is always ending for someone" frames collective grief as a series of personal apocalypses. Will's poem suggests the tools for biblical liberation already exist but are applied selectively to maintain privilege. The tone is reflective, intimate, and conversational, blending humor with profound spiritual questioning. The style is primarily performative spoken word poetry, creating a contemplative and emotionally resonant atmosphere. Listeners interested in poetic theology, deconstruction, and LGBTQ+ inclusive faith would appreciate this episode. Those seeking doctrinal debate or traditional sermonizing might find it less engaging.

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