@==«,,¨¨¨¨ ¨¨¨¨,,«==@
¶££/,¨¨¨¨¨ ¨¨¨¨¨,/££¶
#@==//«,¨¨ ¨¨,«//==@#
##¶@£=/«,¨ ¨,«/=£@¶##
##¶@£=/«,¨ ¨,«/=£@¶##
###¶@£=/«, 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? ¨,«/=£@¶##
@£/,¨¨¨¨¨¨ ¨¨¨¨¨¨,/£@
@===//««,¨ ¨,««//===@
¶£===/,¨¨¨ ¨¨¨,/===£¶
##¶@£=/«,¨ ¨,«/=£@¶##
##¶@£=/«,¨ ¨,«/=£@¶##