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.