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.