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