,,~^$$§@##                                          ##@§$$^~,,
,,~^$$§@##                                          ##@§$$^~,,
,,~^$$§###                                          ###§$$^~,,
,,,,,,^^$@                                          @$^^,,,,,,
,,~^$$§§@@                                          @@§§$$^~,,
,,~^$$§@##               Winds esker                ##@§$$^~,,
,,,,~$$§§@ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ @§§$$~,,,,
,,,,,,~$$§                                          §$$~,,,,,,
,,~^$$$§@# There Was  This Place That For Two Years #@§$$$^~,,
,,~~^$$$$§ I  Couldn'T  Go  To. Regardless How Much §$$$$^~~,,
,,~^$$§@## 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 ##@§$$^~,,
,,,,,,^^$@          Stare Right Through Me?         @$^^,,,,,,
,,~^$$§§§§                                          §§§§$$^~,,
,,~^$$§@##                                          ##@§$$^~,,
,,~^$$§@##                                          ##@§$$^~,,
,,~^$$$$§@                                          @§$$$$^~,,
,,~^$$§§§@                                          @§§§$$^~,,