elves live in the land       
      beyond the great dam.       
  it was built  in  the late  sixties.  
     the elves came to us then.     
                      
                      
 they  were  very  manipulative,  and  we 
 came to trust them.           us 
 kids would play down  at the water  even 
 though we were  not allowed.       
     sometimes the sluice  would  close 
 entirely, and  the  river  at  the  dams 
 foot  would  dry up, revealing the rocky 
 water  garden  that   had   been  hidden 
 beneath, and we would go there.      
      before  the dam  opened  again, 
 there  would be  a signal, but the elves 
 would make us not hear it,  and suddenly 
 we would find the  water rising, already 
 at our knees.                
                      
  by then  the elves  would  be gone.