,^~†*%§¶##                                          ##¶§%*†~^,
,^~†*%§¶@#                                          #@¶§%*†~^,
,,,,,^†%%§                                          §%%†^,,,,,
,^~†*§¶@##                                          ##@¶§*†~^,
,,^~†*%§§§                                          §§§%*†~^,,
,^~†*%§¶@#               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?         #@¶§%*†~^,
,,,,,^~*§¶                                          ¶§*~^,,,,,
,,,,^~*%¶@                                          @¶%*~^,,,,
,^~†*%§¶@#                                          #@¶§%*†~^,
,^~~††%§¶@                                          @¶§%††~~^,
,^~†*%§¶##                                          ##¶§%*†~^,