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.