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.