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.