The Pig, the Sheep, and the Cow

Back in grade school, I fancied myself an author. I worked meticulously over the elements of a book in order: the cover, the title, the table of contents, and finally the first few pages of text. I recall starting a book titled Sisters. It featured four sisters, of whom the second-born most resembled me, in keeping with Little Women and the Laura Ingalls Wilder books. Another, still on my shelf, offers this creation story:
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                           The Pig, the Sheep, and the Cow
In the beginning was nothing . . . nothing; no earth, no water, no sky: nothing. . . .
   And in this vast nothingness lived the only three animals of the universe: namely, the pig, the sheep, and the cow. These, the only three animals of the universe, did nothing . . . nothing; they did not speak, they did not create: in fact they did nothing but turn around and around, and over and over, as there was no up or down.
   One time – there was no day, no night – the cow thought, “I am very dizzy.” The sheep thought, “I am very tired.” And the pig thought, “I am very bored." And although they could not speak, their thoughts were transmitted from each one to the others.
   So then did they create the earth: and they divided it between them, into three parts. The cow, wishing no longer to go up and down, and over and around, lived on a beautiful grassy plain. The sheep made large hills, and the pig, wishing for variety, chose to slosh around in water.
   The animals often visited with each other, and traveled. Where the pig traveled there were rivers, and where he stopped and stayed there became lakes. Where the sheep traveled he left ridges, and where he stopped and visited, mountains. The cow made lowlands among the hills, and islands in the sea, as did the sheep.