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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. ¨¨¨¨¨¨:-;*
;-:¨¨¨¨¨¨¨ ¨¨¨¨¨¨¨:-;
*;-:¨¨¨¨¨¨ 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? ¨¨¨¨:-;*£#
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