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.