Psalm Sonnet 15: The Law of the Other

—for Mandi Els

To live with myself I would have
To pay double on every debt,
But charge no interest on my loans.
I would have to live by a law

That could never be exacted
Because it is too exacting.
To put into code the command
That troubles every conscience:

Live by the law of the Other,
The neighbour who’s judge and victim.