~~~~
~,, ,,~
/, ,/
###¤%=/~,, ,,,,,,,,,,,, / / ,,,,,,,,,,,, ,,~/=%¤###
##¤%=/~,,, /, ,/ ,,,~/=%¤##
###¤%=/~,, ~,, ,,~ ,,~/=%¤###
##¤%=/~,,, ~~~~ ,,,~/=%¤##
###¤%=/~,, ,,~/=%¤###
##¤%=/~,,, 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. ,,~/=%¤###
##¤%=/~,,, ,,,~/=%¤##
###¤%=/~,, ,,~/=%¤###
##¤%=/~,,, ,,,~/=%¤##
###¤%=/~,, ,,~/=%¤###
##¤%=/~,,, ,,,~/=%¤##