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...~:§%&## ............ :            : ............ ##&%§:~...
....~:§%&#              :.          .:              #&%§:~....
.....~:§%&                ~..    ..~                &%§:~.....
......~:§%                   ~~~~                   %§:~......
.......~:§                                          §:~.......
......~:§% 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.          &%§:~.....
......~:§%                                          %§:~......
.......~:§                                          §:~.......
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.....~:§%&                                          &%§:~.....
....~:§%&#                                          #&%§:~....