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,,,,,,,,,, WINDS ESKER ,,,,,,,,,,
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:=~,,,,,,, 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. ,,,,,,,,,~
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,,,,,,,,,, I EXAMINED THE RIDGE, THE TREELINE ,,,,,,,,,,
,,,,,,,,,, ABOVE. WAS THIS WHAT YOU SAW OPPOSITE, ,,,,,,,,,,
,,,,,,,,,, FROM THOSE OTHER SHORES? I COULDN'T ,,,,,,,,,,
,,,,,,,,,, REMEMBER. ,,,,,,,,,,
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=~,,,,,,,, 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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