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\-~¨¨¨¨¨¨¨ WINDS ESKER ¨¨¨¨¨¨¨~-\
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£§%\-~¨¨¨¨ 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. ¨¨¨¨~-\%§£
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#@£§%\-~¨¨ 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. ¨¨¨¨¨¨¨~-\
%\-~¨¨¨¨¨¨ ¨¨¨¨¨¨~-\%
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@£§%\-~¨¨¨ 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? ¨¨~-\%§£@#
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