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@£=;~,¨¨¨¨ ¨¨¨¨,~;=£@
£=;~,¨¨¨¨¨ 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? ¨¨,~;=£@@#
##@@£=;~,¨ ¨,~;=£@@##
#@@£=;~,¨¨ ¨¨,~;=£@@#
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