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.