#¤¤¤$%\-.¨ ¨.-\%$¤¤¤#
###¤$%\-.¨ ¨.-\%$¤###
#¤%--¨¨¨¨¨ ¨¨¨¨¨--%¤#
¤¤%%\-¨¨¨¨ ¨¨¨¨-\%%¤¤
##¤%--...¨ ¨...--%¤##
##$\-¨¨¨¨¨ Winds esker ¨¨¨¨¨-\$##
###¤$%\-.¨ ---------------------------------------- ¨.-\%$¤###
##$%\--¨¨¨ ¨¨¨--\%$##
###¤$%\-.¨ 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? ¨.-\%$¤###
###¤$%\-.¨ ¨.-\%$¤###
###¤$%\-.¨ ¨.-\%$¤###
#$\--¨¨¨¨¨ ¨¨¨¨¨--\$#
####¤%\-.¨ ¨.-\%¤####
##¤¤$%\-.¨ ¨.-\%$¤¤##