¨¨¨~~~=&§#                                          #§&=~~~¨¨¨
¨¨¨¨~†=§@@                                          @@§=†~¨¨¨¨
¨~~†=&§###                                          ###§&=†~~¨
¨~~†=&§@##                                          ##@§&=†~~¨
¨~~†=&§@##                                          ##@§&=†~~¨
¨~~†=&§@##                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?          ##@§&=†~~¨
¨¨¨¨~~~=&@                                          @&=~~~¨¨¨¨
¨~~†=&§§@#                                          #@§§&=†~~¨
¨¨¨¨¨~†=&§                                          §&=†~¨¨¨¨¨
¨~~†=&&§@#                                          #@§&&=†~~¨
¨~~†=&§@##                                          ##@§&=†~~¨