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.