@%%%†,¨¨¨¨ ¨¨¨¨,†%%%@
###@@%^«,¨ ¨,«^%@@###
##@@%^†«,¨ ¨,«†^%@@##
#@^†,¨¨¨¨¨ ¨¨¨¨¨,†^@#
@%^«,,¨¨¨¨ ¨¨¨¨,,«^%@
###@%^†«,¨ 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? ¨¨¨,†^^%@@
@%††«¨¨¨¨¨ ¨¨¨¨¨«††%@
##@@%^†«,¨ ¨,«†^%@@##
#@^†,¨¨¨¨¨ ¨¨¨¨¨,†^@#
#@%†,¨¨¨¨¨ ¨¨¨¨¨,†%@#
##@@%^†«,¨ ¨,«†^%@@##