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.