,^~****& #&&****~^,
,,,,^*** #&***^,,,,
,^~**£&@## ##@&£**~^,
,^~**£## ###&£**~^,
,,,^~**&&& &&&**~^,,,
,^~**£&@## 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? @@@&£**~^,
,,,,^~** #&**~^,,,,
,^~**£&@## ##@&£**~^,
,,,,~~*£@@ @@£*~~,,,,
,^~**£&@## ##@&£**~^,
,,,,,^~*£@ @£*~^,,,,,