¨:«†**§¶@#                                          #@¶§**†«:¨
¨:«†**§¶@#                                          #@¶§**†«:¨
:«†**§¶@##                                          ##@¶§**†«:
¨¨¨¨«««†*§                                          §*†«««¨¨¨¨
¨:«†**§¶@#                                          #@¶§**†«:¨
¨:«†**¶@##                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?         ¶*†:¨¨¨¨¨¨
¨:«†**§¶@#                                          #@¶§**†«:¨
¨:«†**§¶@#                                          #@¶§**†«:¨
¨¨¨¨¨¨«*§§                                          §§*«¨¨¨¨¨¨
¨:«†**§¶@#                                          #@¶§**†«:¨
¨:«††††*§¶                                          ¶§*††††«:¨