#&$$*~,¨¨¨ ¨¨¨,~*$$
@#&$$*~,¨¨ ¨¨,~*$$@
#@#&$$*~,¨ ¨,~*$$@#
@#&$$*~,¨¨ ¨¨,~*$$@
#&$$*~,¨¨¨ ¨¨¨,~*$$
&$$*~,¨¨¨¨ winds esker ¨¨¨¨,~*$$&
#&$$*~,¨¨¨ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ¨¨¨,~*$$
@#&$$*~,¨¨ ¨¨,~*$$@
#@#&$$*~,¨ there was this place that for two years ¨,~*$$@#
@#&$$*~,¨¨ i couldn't go to. regardless how much ¨¨,~*$$@
#&$$*~,¨¨¨ discussed with others, or pointed out ¨¨¨,~*$$
&$$*~,¨¨¨¨ on maps, i could not think of it when ¨¨¨¨,~*$$&
#&$$*~,¨¨¨ alone. i would often travel past the ¨¨¨,~*$$
@#&$$*~,¨¨ fork, where a right turn would surely ¨¨,~*$$@
#@#&$$*~,¨ take me there, but even then, something ¨,~*$$@#
@#&$$*~,¨¨ kept me away. ¨¨,~*$$@
#&$$*~,¨¨¨ ¨¨¨,~*$$
&$$*~,¨¨¨¨ when i finally got there, after some ¨¨¨¨,~*$$&
#&$$*~,¨¨¨ heavy subconscious battle i must ¨¨¨,~*$$
@#&$$*~,¨¨ assume, the place was surreal. an ¨¨,~*$$@
#@#&$$*~,¨ esker, like a needle-thin rift out in ¨,~*$$@#
@#&$$*~,¨¨ the lake, but ten meters high and ¨¨,~*$$@
#&$$*~,¨¨¨ adorned in birch, willow, bracken, and ¨¨¨,~*$$
&$$*~,¨¨¨¨ blueberries. ¨¨¨¨,~*$$&
#&$$*~,¨¨¨ ¨¨¨,~*$$
@#&$$*~,¨¨ walking atop that spine, i came to ¨¨,~*$$@
#@#&$$*~,¨ notice the view to either side. there ¨,~*$$@#
@#&$$*~,¨¨ should be shores, of course, but i ¨¨,~*$$@
#&$$*~,¨¨¨ didn't recognize them. first off, they ¨¨¨,~*$$
&$$*~,¨¨¨¨ were much too close, as the lake should ¨¨¨¨,~*$$&
#&$$*~,¨¨¨ stretch for a hundred meters more on ¨¨¨,~*$$
@#&$$*~,¨¨ both sides. but now i felt i could ¨¨,~*$$@
#@#&$$*~,¨ almost reach out and touch them. and ¨,~*$$@#
@#&$$*~,¨¨ then, when i realized which shores they ¨¨,~*$$@
#&$$*~,¨¨¨ were, i had to stop. ¨¨¨,~*$$
&$$*~,¨¨¨¨ ¨¨¨¨,~*$$&
#&$$*~,¨¨¨ they were of the right lake. but this ¨¨¨,~*$$
@#&$$*~,¨¨ lake is large, fractured, and ¨¨,~*$$@
#@#&$$*~,¨ bipartite. like a pair of lungs carved ¨,~*$$@#
@#&$$*~,¨¨ into the granite, and with no less than ¨¨,~*$$@
#&$$*~,¨¨¨ five communities anchored at various ¨¨¨,~*$$
&$$*~,¨¨¨¨ points. and so, studying these ¨¨¨¨,~*$$&
#&$$*~,¨¨¨ impossibly close shores, i slowly ¨¨¨,~*$$
@#&$$*~,¨¨ understood them as belonging many miles ¨¨,~*$$@
#@#&$$*~,¨ away. ¨,~*$$@#
@#&$$*~,¨¨ ¨¨,~*$$@
#&$$*~,¨¨¨ i examined the ridge, the treeline ¨¨¨,~*$$
&$$*~,¨¨¨¨ above. was this what you saw opposite, ¨¨¨¨,~*$$&
#&$$*~,¨¨¨ from those other shores? i couldn't ¨¨¨,~*$$
@#&$$*~,¨¨ remember. ¨¨,~*$$@
#@#&$$*~,¨ ¨,~*$$@#
@#&$$*~,¨¨ carrying forward, on the very tip of ¨¨,~*$$@
#&$$*~,¨¨¨ the esker, i found the ruins of some ¨¨¨,~*$$
&$$*~,¨¨¨¨ old building. there were overgrown ¨¨¨¨,~*$$&
#&$$*~,¨¨¨ marble staircases, stone floors beneath ¨¨¨,~*$$
@#&$$*~,¨¨ the moss, and strange slabs inserted ¨¨,~*$$@
#@#&$$*~,¨ into the slope like dams against the ¨,~*$$@#
@#&$$*~,¨¨ ground itself. ¨¨,~*$$@
#&$$*~,¨¨¨ ¨¨¨,~*$$
&$$*~,¨¨¨¨ sitting there, i could see across the ¨¨¨¨,~*$$&
#&$$*~,¨¨¨ narrowed lake my entire path to where i ¨¨¨,~*$$
@#&$$*~,¨¨ sat: from the stairwell of my house, ¨¨,~*$$@
#@#&$$*~,¨ through the old woods behind the tile ¨,~*$$@#
@#&$$*~,¨¨ factory, the bridge over route ¨¨,~*$$@
#&$$*~,¨¨¨ twenty three and then back under it, ¨¨¨,~*$$
&$$*~,¨¨¨¨ through the fancy villas, over the ¨¨¨¨,~*$$&
#&$$*~,¨¨¨ fields, and then that right turn at the ¨¨¨,~*$$
@#&$$*~,¨¨ fork. ¨¨,~*$$@
#@#&$$*~,¨ ¨,~*$$@#
@#&$$*~,¨¨ and then the stairs up on the ridge. ¨¨,~*$$@
#&$$*~,¨¨¨ thinking back, this was probably it. ¨¨¨,~*$$
&$$*~,¨¨¨¨ hidden in a grove, there were stairs ¨¨¨¨,~*$$&
#&$$*~,¨¨¨ much like the ones i currently sat on, ¨¨¨,~*$$
@#&$$*~,¨¨ old and worn down, that lead you up ¨¨,~*$$@
#@#&$$*~,¨ onto the esker. the point of entry. had ¨,~*$$@#
@#&$$*~,¨¨ i insted opted to walk the path at its ¨¨,~*$$@
#&$$*~,¨¨¨ foot, i'm sure my experience would've ¨¨¨,~*$$
&$$*~,¨¨¨¨ been different indeed. ¨¨¨¨,~*$$&
#&$$*~,¨¨¨ ¨¨¨,~*$$
@#&$$*~,¨¨ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ¨¨,~*$$@
#@#&$$*~,¨ ¨,~*$$@#
@#&$$*~,¨¨ on the lake, there were people in ¨¨,~*$$@
#&$$*~,¨¨¨ boats. i wondered, could they even see ¨¨¨,~*$$
&$$*~,¨¨¨¨ me? if i shouted, would they turn to ¨¨¨¨,~*$$&
#&$$*~,¨¨¨ stare right through me? ¨¨¨,~*$$
@#&$$*~,¨¨ ¨¨,~*$$@
#@#&$$*~,¨ ¨,~*$$@#
@#&$$*~,¨¨ ¨¨,~*$$@
#&$$*~,¨¨¨ ¨¨¨,~*$$
&$$*~,¨¨¨¨ ¨¨¨¨,~*$$&