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.