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.