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.