¨,»†%$#@##                                          ##@#$%†»,¨
¨,»†%$§###                                          ###§$%†»,¨
¨,»†%$§#@#                                          #@#§$%†»,¨
¨,»†%$§#@#                                          #@#§$%†»,¨
¨,»†%$§#@#                                          #@#§$%†»,¨
¨,»†%$§#@@               Winds esker                @@#§$%†»,¨
¨,»†%$§#@# »»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»» #@#§$%†»,¨
¨¨¨,,»††$§                                          §$††»,,¨¨¨
¨,»†%$§#@# There Was This  Place That For Two Years #@#§$%†»,¨
¨,»†%$§§#@ I  Couldn'T  Go To.  Regardless How Much @#§§$%†»,¨
¨¨¨¨¨,††%§ 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 #§$$%%†»,¨
¨,»†$§#@##      Factory, The Bridge Over Route      ##@#§$†»,¨
¨¨¨¨,††$#@ Twenty three  And  Then  Back Under  It, @#$††,¨¨¨¨
¨,»†%$§#@# Through  The  Fancy   Villas,  Over  The #@#§$%†»,¨
¨,»†%$§#@@ Fields, And Then That Right Turn  At The @@#§$%†»,¨
¨¨¨,†%$§#@                  Fork.                   @#§$%†,¨¨¨
¨,»†%$§#@#                                          #@#§$%†»,¨
¨,»†%$§#@# And Then  The Stairs  Up  On The  Ridge. #@#§$%†»,¨
¨,»†%%%$§@ Thinking  Back,  This Was  Probably  It. @§$%%%†»,¨
¨¨¨¨¨,,†%§ Hidden  In  A  Grove, There  Were Stairs §%†,,¨¨¨¨¨
¨,»†%$§### Much Like The Ones  I Currently  Sat On, ###§$%†»,¨
¨,»†%§#@## Old And  Worn  Down, That  Lead  You  Up ##@#§%†»,¨
¨¨¨,»†%$§# Onto The Esker. The  Point Of Entry. Had #§$%†»,¨¨¨
¨¨¨¨¨,»%%§ I Insted  Opted To Walk The  Path At Its §%%»,¨¨¨¨¨
¨,»†%$§#@# Foot, I'M  Sure  My  Experience Would'Ve #@#§$%†»,¨
¨,»†%$§#@@          Been Different Indeed.          @@#§$%†»,¨
¨,»†%$§#@#                                          #@#§$%†»,¨
¨,»†%$§### »»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»»» ###§$%†»,¨
¨¨¨¨»†%%§@                                          @§%%†»¨¨¨¨
¨,»†%$§#@# On  The  Lake,  There  Were   People  In #@#§$%†»,¨
¨,»†%$§@## Boats. I  Wondered,  Could They Even See ##@§$%†»,¨
¨,»†%$§#@# Me?  If  I Shouted, Would They  Turn  To #@#§$%†»,¨
¨,»†%$§#@#         Stare Right Through Me?          #@#§$%†»,¨
¨¨¨»††††%§                                          §%††††»¨¨¨
¨¨,,,†%$§#                                          #§$%†,,,¨¨
¨,»†%§#@##                                          ##@#§%†»,¨
¨,»†%$§#@#                                          #@#§$%†»,¨
¨,»†%$$$§#                                          #§$$$%†»,¨