¨§§¨¨§§§§¨ §¨§§¨§¨§¨§
¨¨§¨§¨§§§¨ §¨¨§¨§¨§¨§
¨§§¨§¨¨§§¨ §¨§§¨§¨§¨§
¨¨§¨§¨§¨§¨ §¨¨§¨§¨§¨§
¨§§¨§¨§¨§¨ §¨§§¨§¨§¨§
¨¨§¨§¨§¨§¨ 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? §¨§§¨§¨§¨§
¨¨§¨§¨§¨§¨ §¨¨§¨§¨§¨§
¨§§¨§¨§¨§¨ §¨§§¨§¨§¨§
¨¨§¨§¨§¨§¨ §¨¨§¨§¨§¨§
¨§§¨§¨§¨§¨ §¨§§¨§¨§¨§
¨¨§¨§¨§¨§¨ §¨¨§¨§¨§¨§