,,,,,~*^#£ £#^*~,,,,,
,,,,,,~*^# #^*~,,,,,,
,,,,,,,~*^ ^*~,,,,,,,
,,,,,,,,~* *~,,,,,,,,
,,,,,,,,,~ ~,,,,,,,,,
,,,,,,,,,, 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? ~,,,,,,,,,
,,,,,,,,,, ,,,,,,,,,,
,,,,,,,,,~ ~,,,,,,,,,
,,,,,,,,~* *~,,,,,,,,
,,,,,,,~*^ ^*~,,,,,,,
,,,,,,~*^# #^*~,,,,,,