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.