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.