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.