¨:««\†$$¶#                                          #¶$$†\««:¨
¨:«\††$$¤¤                                          ¤¤$$††\«:¨
¨¨¨¨«††¤¶¶                                          ¶¶¤††«¨¨¨¨
¨:«\†$¤¶##                                          ##¶¤$†\«:¨
¨:«\†$¤¶##                                          ##¶¤$†\«:¨
¨:\†$¤¶###               WINDS ESKER                ###¶¤$†\:¨
¨¨¨¨¨¨:\†¤ «««««««««««««««««««««««««««««««««««««««« ¤†\:¨¨¨¨¨¨
¨¨¨¨¨¨:«†¤                                          ¤†«:¨¨¨¨¨¨
¨¨¨¨¨««\$¤ 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 ¤$$$\:¨¨¨¨
¨:«\†$¤¶¶# ME?  IF  I  SHOUTED, WOULD THEY  TURN TO #¶¶¤$†\«:¨
¨:«\†$¤¶##          STARE RIGHT THROUGH ME?         ##¶¤$†\«:¨
¨¨¨¨::«†$¶                                          ¶$†«::¨¨¨¨
¨:«\†$¤¶##                                          ##¶¤$†\«:¨
¨:«\†$¤¶##                                          ##¶¤$†\«:¨
¨:«\†$¤¶##                                          ##¶¤$†\«:¨
¨¨¨¨«††$¤¤                                          ¤¤$††«¨¨¨¨