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.