Looking for a Pig

We started our visit in the children’s activity room. One of the girls there said she knew a pig in the hospital that ate all her hamburgers. We asked if she could paint a picture of that pig for us, and we suggested we might be able to find it hiding somewhere. She made a lovely picture – a true documentation of a dangerous, hamburger-eating pig that had disappeared – and we started our search.

In the hallway, we met a very serious, quiet, older doctor. He had grey hair and glasses, and his lips were pressed together. His face seemed to show his thoughts: »I’m not joking ...I’m never joking …« It felt like it was the first time he had seen us in the hospital.

He came straight towards us, asking: »Can you tell me what you’re doing here? What’s your intention?« I calmly and seriously answered: »We’re looking for a pig that ate one little lady’s hamburgers.« The doctor’s eyes got smaller and with a hint of frustration he asked again: »What I’m really asking is ...What are you doing here?« For a moment, I felt stupid and confused, but my clown was sure of what he was doing. »OK, OK. I have a document if you really want to know.« I pulled out the painting of a pig and showed it to him. »We’re really looking for a pig – this one.« He stared at the picture for a long time, looking confused. It was as if he was deciding whether to be angry. Finally, he just shook his head and walked away, hurrying down the corridor. We were afraid we had gone too far, but he turned back to us and said, »So, I have to hide from you.« He smiled and grunted like a pig. He had decided to join us and, suddenly, the atmosphere had changed.

We set off on our mission again. We were in our last room of the day, still searching for the pig. A mother was sitting there, looking worried. Her son was in bed. Just like real detectives, we started to question them both, peppering them with hundreds of questions. Where could we find this mysterious animal? The boy sat up and said that he had eaten the pig. We were shocked. »You ate the pig?« we asked in unison. »Why did you do that?« »Do you know how dangerous that is?« »What should we do with you now?« »The pig is inside you! Aaa!«
Everyone was laughing when a doctor came into the room and announced, »It’s time to take you for surgery, my boy ...« What a coincidence. We continued the game, saying, »Yes! Perfect! Someone has to take that pig out!« The boy’s mother couldn’t stop laughing. The boy left her smiling.

We sat there with his mother for a moment. She thanked us. We handed her the picture of the pig and left the room.