.#....#.#. ..#...###.
..#......# ...#..#.##
#..#...... ....#...##
##..#..... #....#..#.
###..#.... ##....#...
#.##..#... 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? ...#..#...
.#.##...## ....#..#..
...###..#. #....#..#.
...#.##... .#....#..#
#....###.. ..#....#..
.#...#.##. ...#....#.