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.