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.