Alice had the gift of foresight even as a little girl, but her premonitions were not nearly as strong as they would be later in her life. They came to her more as feelings than visions. At first her parents thought her premonitions were amusing. "Alice is always right," they would say when the five-year-old dressed herself in a slicker even though the sky was blue; later, of course, the rain would begin. "Grandma will be here soon," she would announce. They would laugh and put out an extra plate.