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.