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.