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.