¨,»^%&¤#@# #@#¤&%^»,¨
¨¨,,»^%¤¤@ @¤¤%^»,,¨¨
¨¨¨¨¨,^# ##&^,¨¨¨¨¨
¨¨¨¨¨¨»^&¤ ¤&^»¨¨¨¨¨¨
¨,»^%&&@ @#&&&%^»,¨
¨,»^%&¤#@# 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? ¤¤&^,¨¨¨¨¨
¨,»^%&¤#@# #@#¤&%^»,¨
¨¨¨¨¨¨,^ #&^,¨¨¨¨¨¨
¨,»^%&¤#@# #@#¤&%^»,¨
¨,»^%&¤#@# #@#¤&%^»,¨
¨,»^%%%%&¤ ¤&%%%%^»,¨