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.