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.