¨¨¨¨¨¨¨~~† †~~¨¨¨¨¨¨¨
¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨~~ ~~¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨
¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨~ ~¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨
¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨~~ ~~¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨
¨¨¨¨¨¨¨~~† †~~¨¨¨¨¨¨¨
¨¨¨¨¨¨~~†§ 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? †~~¨¨¨¨¨¨¨
¨¨¨¨¨¨~~†§ §†~~¨¨¨¨¨¨
¨¨¨¨¨~~†§£ £§†~~¨¨¨¨¨
¨¨¨¨~~†§£# #£§†~~¨¨¨¨
¨¨¨~~†§£#@ @#£§†~~¨¨¨
¨¨~~†§£#@# #@#£§†~~¨¨