----
-.. ..-
*. .*
###&$^*-.. ............ * * ............ ..-*^$&###
#&&$^*-... *. .* ...-*^$&&#
&&$**..... -.. ..- .....**$&&
&^**-..... ---- .....-**^&
&&^*-..... .....-*^&&
&&$$$^*-.. The River That'S Our River Makes A ..-*^$$$&&
###&$^*-.. Large Bend Like A Scooping Hand And A ..-*^$&###
###&$^*-.. Decent Days Travel North From That ..-*^$&###
###&$^*-.. Stands Our House In The Middle Of A ..-*^$&###
###&$^*-.. Forgotten Apple Orchard. Our House Is ..-*^$&###
&$^--..... Built Of Dark Clay And Abandoned By A .....--^$&
###&$^*-.. Stranger. The Window Has No Glass But ..-*^$&###
#&&$^**-.. Instead Steel Bars To Keep The Animals ..-**^$&&#
###&$^*-.. Out. ..-*^$&###
####&^*-.. ..-*^&####
##&$*-.... Around The House Is A Thick, Thick ....-*$&##
###&$^*-.. Brush Of Ferns And Bushes. There Live ..-*^$&###
###&$^*-.. The Animals That We Fight To Keep Away, ..-*^$&###
##$^^**-.. For They Speak To Us To Join Them In ..-**^^$##
###&$^*-.. The Luscious Caves Below Ground. They ..-*^$&###
&^-....... 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. ......-^&#
###&$^*-.. ..-*^$&###
&&&$**.... ....**$&&&
###&$^*-.. ..-*^$&###
#&&$*..... .....*$&&#
&$***--... ...--***$&