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.