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.