#¶¶#$†\»^. .^»\†$#¶¶#
####$†\»^. .^»\†$####
¶¶$\\\^... ...^\\\$¶¶
##¶#$†\»^. .^»\†$#¶##
¶¶$$$†\»^. .^»\†$$$¶¶
##¶#$†\»^. winds esker .^»\†$#¶##
¶¶#††\^... »»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»» ...^\††#¶¶
¶##$\\»^.. ..^»\\$##¶
##¶#$†\»^. there was this place that for two years .^»\†$#¶##
##$†»»^... i couldn't go to. regardless how much ...^»»†$##
¶$†»^..... discussed with others, or pointed out .....^»†$¶
##¶#$†\»^. on maps, i could not think of it when .^»\†$#¶##
¶#$†\^^^.. alone. i would often travel past the ..^^^\†$#¶
###¶#†\»^. 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 .^»\†$#¶##
¶¶$$$†\»^. me? if i shouted, would they turn to .^»\†$$$¶¶
#¶$\^..... stare right through me? .....^\$¶#
¶¶$††\\»^. .^»\\††$¶¶
¶$†»...... ......»†$¶
¶#$†††\»^. .^»\†††$#¶
##¶#$†\»^. .^»\†$#¶##
####$†\»^. .^»\†$####