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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. ,,,,,,,,,.
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.,,,,,,,,, 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? ,,,,,,.~/*
%*/~.,,,,, ,,,,,.~/*%
£%*/~.,,,, ,,,,.~/*%£
#£%*/~.,,, ,,,.~/*%£#
##£%*/~.,, ,,.~/*%£##
###£%*/~., ,.~/*%£###