««««                             
                          «..    ..«                          
                        /.          ./                        
#&^/«..... ............ /            / ............ .....«/^&#
@#&^/«....              /.          ./              ....«/^&#@
#@#&^/«...                «..    ..«                ...«/^&#@#
##@#&^/«..                   ««««                   ..«/^&#@##
#@#&^/«...                                          ...«/^&#@#
@#&^/«.... The  River  That'S  Our  River  Makes  A ....«/^&#@
#&^/«..... Large Bend Like  A Scooping  Hand  And A .....«/^&#
&^/«...... Decent  Days  Travel   North  From  That ......«/^&
^/«....... Stands Our  House In  The  Middle  Of  A .......«/^
/«........ Forgotten  Apple  Orchard. Our  House Is ........«/
^/«....... Built Of Dark  Clay  And  Abandoned By A .......«/^
&^/«...... Stranger. The  Window  Has  No Glass But ......«/^&
#&^/«..... Instead Steel Bars  To Keep  The Animals .....«/^&#
@#&^/«....                   Out.                   ....«/^&#@
#@#&^/«...                                          ...«/^&#@#
##@#&^/«.. Around  The  House  Is  A  Thick,  Thick ..«/^&#@##
#@#&^/«... Brush Of  Ferns  And  Bushes. There Live ...«/^&#@#
@#&^/«.... The Animals That We  Fight To Keep Away, ....«/^&#@
#&^/«..... For  They  Speak To  Us To Join  Them In .....«/^&#
&^/«...... The Luscious  Caves  Below  Ground. They ......«/^&
^/«....... Mean  No Harm But It Is Not  In Our Best .......«/^
/«........ Interest  To Do So.  There  Is Important ........«/
^/«....... Work That Needs To Be Done, And  It Cant .......«/^
&^/«...... Be  Done By Animals. (Father Says This.) ......«/^&
#&^/«.....                                          .....«/^&#
@#&^/«.... Every  Morning  Our  Father  Clears  The ....«/^&#@
#@#&^/«... Ferns  And  Uproots The Bushes Only  For ...«/^&#@#
##@#&^/«.. Them  To  Grow  Back  Each Night.  Their ..«/^&#@##
#@#&^/«... Leaves Are  Teal, White And Yellow, Some ...«/^&#@#
@#&^/«.... Even The Color Of  Wine. They Have Lilac ....«/^&#@
#&^/«..... Flowers And In The  Morning They Are Wet .....«/^&#
&^/«......                With Dew.                 ......«/^&
^/«.......                                          .......«/^
/«........ Father  Is  Away  During  The Day  Doing ........«/
^/«....... Important Things Elsewhere.  He Is Weary .......«/^
&^/«...... When He  Returns Home, Each Day  More So ......«/^&
#&^/«..... Than The Next. We Learn To Cook  For Him .....«/^&#
@#&^/«.... So That He Does Not Have To. We  Tend To ....«/^&#@
#@#&^/«...               His Clothes.               ...«/^&#@#
##@#&^/«..                                          ..«/^&#@##
#@#&^/«... Suddenly The Dense  Bushwork Is Mirrored ...«/^&#@#
@#&^/«.... Inside. Stems  And  Leaves  Appear Close ....«/^&#@
#&^/«..... To The Walls And Far From The Light.  We .....«/^&#
&^/«...... Are Glad, For The Flowers  Are Beautiful ......«/^&
^/«....... And  Smell  Good,  And  There Is  Little .......«/^
/«........ Decoration   In  Our  House.  But   When ........«/
^/«....... Father  Comes Home  He Is Angry And Cuts .......«/^
&^/«...... Them  All  Down  In  A  Frenzy.  We  Are ......«/^&
#&^/«.....           Scared Of Him Then.            .....«/^&#
@#&^/«....                                          ....«/^&#@
#@#&^/«... We  Are Then Tasked  With  Removing  Any ...«/^&#@#
##@#&^/«.. Indoor  Plant  We  See. But They Are  So ..«/^&#@##
#@#&^/«... Beautiful!  We  Wait  Just  Until Father ...«/^&#@#
@#&^/«.... Comes  Home  And  Until  Then  We  Enjoy ....«/^&#@
#&^/«..... Them.  Sometimes An Animal Will Sneak In .....«/^&#
&^/«...... But We Always Shoo  Them Out. With Fresh ......«/^&
^/«....... Cut Flowers  Thrown  Right  Outside  The .......«/^
/«........ House   He  Suspects  And  Resents   Our ........«/
^/«....... Inaction.  But  He  Doesn'T   Have   The .......«/^
&^/«...... Energy  To Scold Us. He Weakens Quickly. ......«/^&
#&^/«..... It Is Not Long Before He  Is Still Tired .....«/^&#
@#&^/«.... Even    In    The   Morning   And   Must ....«/^&#@
#@#&^/«...    Reluctantly Leave The Outdoor Weed    ...«/^&#@#
##@#&^/«.. Cutting To  Us As  Well, Untrusting That ..«/^&#@##
#@#&^/«...          We Will Carry It Out.           ...«/^&#@#
@#&^/«....                                          ....«/^&#@
#&^/«..... Now  He Leaves As Soon As He'S Awake And .....«/^&#
&^/«...... Falls Asleep  As Soon As He Returns.  We ......«/^&
^/«....... Are  Left  To Care  For Us And The House .......«/^
/«........ And The Orchard. But It Is  Hard  And We ........«/
^/«....... Are   Distracted.   We    Are   Not   As .......«/^
&^/«...... Persistent  As  Father  And Quickly Fall ......«/^&
#&^/«.....           Behind In Our Duties.          .....«/^&#
@#&^/«....                                          ....«/^&#@
#@#&^/«...                                          ...«/^&#@#
##@#&^/«..                                          ..«/^&#@##
#@#&^/«...                                          ...«/^&#@#
@#&^/«....                                          ....«/^&#@