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.