Human Again

Look closely at a story,
Any story, and you’ll see

People can only make real
Human characters, human

Motivations, human needs.
Angels, gods, and aliens,

Talking animals, monsters,
intellectual machines—

The most vivid creations
Inevitably behave,

Mutatis mutandis, as
Humans are known to behave.

Do your best to bring others
To life, your worst to other

Human beings you don’t like,
Those others are always you.

They don’t just resemble you—
Story others are just you.

Explanations, equations,
Careful record-keeping can,

By avoiding narrative,
Come out fairly accurate,

But let a little story
Wander into descriptions

Of anything not human,
And all is human again.