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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. ¨,~=†%¤£##
##£¤%†=~,¨ ¨,~=†%¤£##
##£¤%†=~,¨ 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? ¨¨¨¨,,=†¤£
£%†††=~,,¨ ¨,,~=†††%£
##£¤%†=~,¨ ¨,~=†%¤£##
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