$*=~.,,,,, ,,,,,.~=*$
*=~.,,,,,, ,,,,,,.~=*
=~.,,,,,,, ,,,,,,,.~=
~.,,,,,,,, ,,,,,,,,.~
.,,,,,,,,, ,,,,,,,,,.
~.,,,,,,,, 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? ,,,,,,,,,.
~.,,,,,,,, ,,,,,,,,.~
=~.,,,,,,, ,,,,,,,.~=
*=~.,,,,,, ,,,,,,.~=*
$*=~.,,,,, ,,,,,.~=*$
£$*=~.,,,, ,,,,.~=*$£