««««                             
                          «^^    ^^«                          
                        =^          ^=                        
.....^«=%% ............ =            = ............ %%=«^.....
......^«=%              =^          ^=              %=«^......
.......^«=                «^^    ^^«                =«^.......
........^«                   ««««                   «^........
.........^                                          ^.........
.......... 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.           %%=«^.....
....^«=%%&                                          &%%=«^....
...^«=%%&£                                          £&%%=«^...
..^«=%%&£@                                          @£&%%=«^..
.^«=%%&£@#                                          #@£&%%=«^.
..^«=%%&£@                                          @£&%%=«^..