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.