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.