##¶§£§:«~¨                                          ¨~«:§£§¶##
#¶§£§:«~¨¨                                          ¨¨~«:§£§¶#
##¶§£§:«~¨                                          ¨~«:§£§¶##
#¶§£§:«~¨¨                                          ¨¨~«:§£§¶#
##¶§£§:«~¨                                          ¨~«:§£§¶##
#¶§£§:«~¨¨                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?         ¨~«:§£§¶##
#¶§£§:«~¨¨                                          ¨¨~«:§£§¶#
##¶§£§:«~¨                                          ¨~«:§£§¶##
#¶§£§:«~¨¨                                          ¨¨~«:§£§¶#
##¶§£§:«~¨                                          ¨~«:§£§¶##
#¶§£§:«~¨¨                                          ¨¨~«:§£§¶#