&&,,,&&&,, ,,,,&&&,,&
&,,&,,&,,& ,&&,,&,,,,
,,,,,,,,,, ,,,,,,,&&,
&&&&&&&&&, &&&&&&,,,,
,&&&&&&&,, &&&&&,,&&,
,,&&&&&,,, 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? &&&&&&&&&&
&&&&&&&&&& &&&&&&&&&&
&&&&&&&&&& &&&&&&&&&&
&&&&&&&&&& &&&&&&&&&&
&&&&&&&&&& &&&&&&&&&&
&&&&&&&&&& &&&&&&&&&&