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.