#†;««^¨¨¨¨ ¨¨¨¨^««;†#
##†;««¨¨¨¨ ¨¨¨¨««;†##
##@#*†;«^¨ ¨^«;†*#@##
###@#*†;«^ ^«;†*#@###
#*†;«^¨¨¨¨ ¨¨¨¨^«;†*#
###@*†;«^¨ 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? ¨^«;†*#@##
#**;;^^^¨¨ ¨¨^^^;;**#
##@#*†;«^¨ ¨^«;†*#@##
#*†;«^¨¨¨¨ ¨¨¨¨^«;†*#
#@#†;^¨¨¨¨ ¨¨¨¨^;†#@#
##@#*†;«^¨ ¨^«;†*#@##