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@¨@¨@¨@¨@¨ WINDS ESKER ¨@¨@¨@¨@¨@
@¨@¨@¨@¨@¨ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ¨@¨@¨@¨@¨¨
@¨@¨@¨@¨@¨ ¨@¨@¨@¨@¨@
@¨@¨@¨@¨@¨ THERE WAS THIS PLACE THAT FOR TWO YEARS ¨@¨@¨@¨@¨¨
@¨@¨@¨@¨@¨ I COULDN'T GO TO. REGARDLESS HOW MUCH ¨@¨@¨@¨@¨@
@¨@¨@¨@¨@¨ DISCUSSED WITH OTHERS, OR POINTED OUT ¨@¨@¨@¨@¨¨
@¨@¨@¨@¨@¨ ON MAPS, I COULD NOT THINK OF IT WHEN ¨@¨@¨@¨@¨@
@¨@¨@¨@¨@¨ ALONE. I WOULD OFTEN TRAVEL PAST THE ¨@¨@¨@¨@¨¨
@¨@¨@¨@¨@¨ FORK, WHERE A RIGHT TURN WOULD SURELY ¨@¨@¨@¨@¨@
@¨@¨@¨@¨@¨ TAKE ME THERE, BUT EVEN THEN, SOMETHING ¨@¨@¨@¨@¨¨
@¨@¨@¨@¨@¨ KEPT ME AWAY. ¨@¨@¨@¨@¨@
@¨@¨@¨@¨@¨ ¨@¨@¨@¨@¨¨
@¨@¨@¨@¨@¨ WHEN I FINALLY GOT THERE, AFTER SOME ¨@¨@¨@¨@¨@
@¨@¨@¨@¨@¨ HEAVY SUBCONSCIOUS BATTLE I MUST ¨@¨@¨@¨@¨¨
@¨@¨@¨@¨@¨ ASSUME, THE PLACE WAS SURREAL. AN ¨@¨@¨@¨@¨@
@¨@¨@¨@¨@¨ ESKER, LIKE A NEEDLE-THIN RIFT OUT IN ¨@¨@¨@¨@¨¨
@¨@¨@¨@¨@¨ THE LAKE, BUT TEN METERS HIGH AND ¨@¨@¨@¨@¨@
@¨@¨@¨@¨@¨ ADORNED IN BIRCH, WILLOW, BRACKEN, AND ¨@¨@¨@¨@¨¨
@¨@¨@¨@¨@¨ BLUEBERRIES. ¨@¨@¨@¨@¨@
@¨@¨@¨@¨@¨ ¨@¨@¨@¨@¨¨
@¨@¨@¨@¨@¨ WALKING ATOP THAT SPINE, I CAME TO ¨@¨@¨@¨@¨@
@¨@¨@¨@¨@¨ NOTICE THE VIEW TO EITHER SIDE. THERE ¨@¨@¨@¨@¨¨
@¨@¨@¨@¨@¨ SHOULD BE SHORES, OF COURSE, BUT I ¨@¨@¨@¨@¨@
@¨@¨@¨@¨@¨ DIDN'T RECOGNIZE THEM. FIRST OFF, THEY ¨@¨@¨@¨@¨¨
@¨@¨@¨@¨@¨ WERE MUCH TOO CLOSE, AS THE LAKE SHOULD ¨@¨@¨@¨@¨@
@¨@¨@¨@¨@¨ STRETCH FOR A HUNDRED METERS MORE ON ¨@¨@¨@¨@¨¨
@¨@¨@¨@¨@¨ BOTH SIDES. BUT NOW I FELT I COULD ¨@¨@¨@¨@¨@
@¨@¨@¨@¨@¨ ALMOST REACH OUT AND TOUCH THEM. AND ¨@¨@¨@¨@¨¨
@¨@¨@¨@¨@¨ THEN, WHEN I REALIZED WHICH SHORES THEY ¨@¨@¨@¨@¨@
@¨@¨@¨@¨@¨ WERE, I HAD TO STOP. ¨@¨@¨@¨@¨¨
@¨@¨@¨@¨@¨ ¨@¨@¨@¨@¨@
@¨@¨@¨@¨@¨ THEY WERE OF THE RIGHT LAKE. BUT THIS ¨@¨@¨@¨@¨¨
@¨@¨@¨@¨@¨ LAKE IS LARGE, FRACTURED, AND ¨@¨@¨@¨@¨@
@¨@¨@¨@¨@¨ BIPARTITE. LIKE A PAIR OF LUNGS CARVED ¨@¨@¨@¨@¨¨
@¨@¨@¨@¨@¨ INTO THE GRANITE, AND WITH NO LESS THAN ¨@¨@¨@¨@¨@
@¨@¨@¨@¨@¨ FIVE COMMUNITIES ANCHORED AT VARIOUS ¨@¨@¨@¨@¨¨
@¨@¨@¨@¨@¨ POINTS. AND SO, STUDYING THESE ¨@¨@¨@¨@¨@
@¨@¨@¨@¨@¨ IMPOSSIBLY CLOSE SHORES, I SLOWLY ¨@¨@¨@¨@¨¨
@¨@¨@¨@¨@¨ UNDERSTOOD THEM AS BELONGING MANY MILES ¨@¨@¨@¨@¨@
@¨@¨@¨@¨@¨ AWAY. ¨@¨@¨@¨@¨¨
@¨@¨@¨@¨@¨ ¨@¨@¨@¨@¨@
@¨@¨@¨@¨@¨ I EXAMINED THE RIDGE, THE TREELINE ¨@¨@¨@¨@¨¨
@¨@¨@¨@¨@¨ ABOVE. WAS THIS WHAT YOU SAW OPPOSITE, ¨@¨@¨@¨@¨@
@¨@¨@¨@¨@¨ FROM THOSE OTHER SHORES? I COULDN'T ¨@¨@¨@¨@¨¨
@¨@¨@¨@¨@¨ REMEMBER. ¨@¨@¨@¨@¨@
@¨@¨@¨@¨@¨ ¨@¨@¨@¨@¨¨
@¨@¨@¨@¨@¨ CARRYING FORWARD, ON THE VERY TIP OF ¨@¨@¨@¨@¨@
@¨@¨@¨@¨@¨ THE ESKER, I FOUND THE RUINS OF SOME ¨@¨@¨@¨@¨¨
@¨@¨@¨@¨@¨ OLD BUILDING. THERE WERE OVERGROWN ¨@¨@¨@¨@¨@
@¨@¨@¨@¨@¨ MARBLE STAIRCASES, STONE FLOORS BENEATH ¨@¨@¨@¨@¨¨
@¨@¨@¨@¨@¨ THE MOSS, AND STRANGE SLABS INSERTED ¨@¨@¨@¨@¨@
@¨@¨@¨@¨@¨ INTO THE SLOPE LIKE DAMS AGAINST THE ¨@¨@¨@¨@¨¨
@¨@¨@¨@¨@¨ GROUND ITSELF. ¨@¨@¨@¨@¨@
@¨@¨@¨@¨@¨ ¨@¨@¨@¨@¨¨
@¨@¨@¨@¨@¨ SITTING THERE, I COULD SEE ACROSS THE ¨@¨@¨@¨@¨@
@¨@¨@¨@¨@¨ NARROWED LAKE MY ENTIRE PATH TO WHERE I ¨@¨@¨@¨@¨¨
@¨@¨@¨@¨@¨ SAT: FROM THE STAIRWELL OF MY HOUSE, ¨@¨@¨@¨@¨@
@¨@¨@¨@¨@¨ THROUGH THE OLD WOODS BEHIND THE TILE ¨@¨@¨@¨@¨¨
@¨@¨@¨@¨@¨ FACTORY, THE BRIDGE OVER ROUTE ¨@¨@¨@¨@¨@
@¨@¨@¨@¨@¨ TWENTY THREE AND THEN BACK UNDER IT, ¨@¨@¨@¨@¨¨
@¨@¨@¨@¨@¨ THROUGH THE FANCY VILLAS, OVER THE ¨@¨@¨@¨@¨@
@¨@¨@¨@¨@¨ FIELDS, AND THEN THAT RIGHT TURN AT THE ¨@¨@¨@¨@¨¨
@¨@¨@¨@¨@¨ FORK. ¨@¨@¨@¨@¨@
@¨@¨@¨@¨@¨ ¨@¨@¨@¨@¨¨
@¨@¨@¨@¨@¨ AND THEN THE STAIRS UP ON THE RIDGE. ¨@¨@¨@¨@¨@
@¨@¨@¨@¨@¨ THINKING BACK, THIS WAS PROBABLY IT. ¨@¨@¨@¨@¨¨
@¨@¨@¨@¨@¨ HIDDEN IN A GROVE, THERE WERE STAIRS ¨@¨@¨@¨@¨@
@¨@¨@¨@¨@¨ MUCH LIKE THE ONES I CURRENTLY SAT ON, ¨@¨@¨@¨@¨¨
@¨@¨@¨@¨@¨ OLD AND WORN DOWN, THAT LEAD YOU UP ¨@¨@¨@¨@¨@
@¨@¨@¨@¨@¨ ONTO THE ESKER. THE POINT OF ENTRY. HAD ¨@¨@¨@¨@¨¨
@¨@¨@¨@¨@¨ I INSTED OPTED TO WALK THE PATH AT ITS ¨@¨@¨@¨@¨@
@¨@¨@¨@¨@¨ FOOT, I'M SURE MY EXPERIENCE WOULD'VE ¨@¨@¨@¨@¨¨
@¨@¨@¨@¨@¨ BEEN DIFFERENT INDEED. ¨@¨@¨@¨@¨@
@¨@¨@¨@¨@¨ ¨@¨@¨@¨@¨¨
@¨@¨@¨@¨@¨ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ¨@¨@¨@¨@¨@
@¨@¨@¨@¨@¨ ¨@¨@¨@¨@¨¨
@¨@¨@¨@¨@¨ ON THE LAKE, THERE WERE PEOPLE IN ¨@¨@¨@¨@¨@
@¨@¨@¨@¨@¨ BOATS. I WONDERED, COULD THEY EVEN SEE ¨@¨@¨@¨@¨¨
@¨@¨@¨@¨@¨ ME? IF I SHOUTED, WOULD THEY TURN TO ¨@¨@¨@¨@¨@
@¨@¨@¨@¨@¨ STARE RIGHT THROUGH ME? ¨@¨@¨@¨@¨¨
@¨@¨@¨@¨@¨ ¨@¨@¨@¨@¨@
@¨@¨@¨@¨@¨ ¨@¨@¨@¨@¨¨
@¨@¨@¨@¨@¨ ¨@¨@¨@¨@¨@
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