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.