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.