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knew.
    “Why, this is my baby,” said Clara with a twinkle in her eye. “Her name is Daisy.” Then she held her forefinger over her lips. “I think she’s still asleep.”
    Alice peeked into the baby buggy to see a pair of dark beady eyes and a black snout poking out of a white baby bonnet. “Well, hello there, Daisy,” said Alice.
    “Oh, Daisy,” said Clara, bending over to see. “Did you wake up already? I thought you were still taking your afternoon nap.”
    Alice was not sure what to say next. It would feel disingenuous to say, “What a pretty baby.”
    “How old is she?” she finally asked. “She seems quite small.”
    “Daisy just turned seven weeks,” said Clara proudly. “Barely old enough to be weaned from her mother. She stilldrinks from a bottle sometimes. Really, isn’t she just the sweetest thing you ever saw?”
    “I’ve never seen anything like her,” said Alice honestly. She studied the dark face and began to think that the pig was rather cute, in a piggy sort of way. Then she reached out and patted the small animal on the head. The pig gave a soft grunt and Alice smiled. “She’s really quite nice,” said Alice.
    Clara nodded. “Yes, she’s a darling.”
    “Have a good day,” said Alice and continued her walk toward Vera’s house. Alice smiled to herself. Not only did she have freshly made sugar cookies for Vera, but she also had an interesting story to share.

    The two friends sat on the sofa in Vera’s living room and laughed over Daisy.
    “A real live pig?” asked Vera.
    “Yes. I saw it with my own eyes,” said Alice. “Her name is Daisy and she’s actually sort of cute. She’s much smaller than I expected. Although Jane says they can grow to be hundreds of pounds.”
    “My word!” Vera laughed again and shook her head. “Well, your visit is making me feel better, Alice. I was feeling pretty blue before you got here.”
    “Oh, don’t worry, Vera. People often get a little depressedwhen they’re ill. Believe me, I see it every day at the hospital. I’m sure you’ll be back to yourself in no time.”
    “I hope so. I’ve already missed three days of school. That’s more than I’ve missed in the last three years. And here we are only starting the term.” Vera shook her head. “It’s hard on the kids having a substitute this soon.”
    “Well, there’s nothing you can do about that. Try not to think about it and just take it easy.”
    “That’s about all I can do,” said Vera. She held up a book. “Fred brought me this new novel that I’ve been wanting to read, but I barely make it through a single page before I fall asleep again.”
    Alice patted Vera’s hand. “Resting may be your best medicine right now. And for that reason, I’m going to leave you to it. May I get you anything first?”
    “You already got me juice and tea, Alice. I think I’ll be perfectly fine until Fred gets home.”
    “I’ll be praying for you, Vera,” promised Alice.
    “Thanks.” Vera looked up with sad eyes. “I appreciate it.”
    Walking toward home, Alice prayed for her dear friend. She asked God to comfort her and give her rest and help her to get well. When she got home, she found her sisters and several of the guests gathered on the front porch, enjoying tea or lemonade and sugar cookies.
    “Come join us,” called Jane.
    “I met Clara Horn’s baby,” announced Alice as Jane poured her a cup of tea.
    Jane began giggling, and Louise quickly explained to the guests what was so amusing about this little bit of news.
    “Tell us about it,” urged Mrs. Miller.
    “Well, the piglet’s name is Daisy. She’s about seven weeks old, drinks from a baby bottle and wears a baby bonnet. Oh yes, and she was being transported in a baby carriage. It was really rather sweet.”
    “It will not be so sweet when the piglet grows up into a great big hog,” said Louise.
    “I saw a special about those pigs on TV once,” said Mrs. Miller. “They were having a hard time