Do you realize...

I'm writing a children's novel this summer. Check out the first five pages, brought to you exclusively by my blog...

Of all the people in this great big, whole wide, ever-changing world, very few are enthusiastic about (and even fewer, properly matched with) their age. There are old souls stuck in young bodies, immature spirits haphazardly breaking loose from wrinkled skin and shrinking bones, and everyone in between who just wants to be two years older (will eighteen ever come!) or one day younger ?(I could've been a tax break)?.
Aurelia Cielo was a blessed soul, completely free of any misgivings or mismatching when it came to her age. She was, quite simply, the world's elevenest eleven year old.
There were a lot of ways that Aurelia enjoyed her age. She studied salamanders in summer streams. She flew face first into fall's fantastic foliage. She wide-eyed wandered along the white wilderness of winter. And finally, in the spring of her eleventh year, just before she was to turn twelve (and appropriately so, for soon she would outgrow the elevenness of eleven)- Aurelia Cielo embarked upon the most stunning, frantic, wonderful, dizzying, life-changing, rip-roaring, gut-wrenching, all out amazing ride of her life.
But it didn't start off so exciting. No, on the contrary, May 11 started out just like any other day, with a sunrise and a tea set.
Aurelia's Aunt Gloria started every day with an entire kettle full of tea. Luckily, she started every day closer to noon than nine, allowing Aurelia a chance to sleep as late as she wished (8:27 every morning with the exception of Sundays and major holidays, when she slumbered right up until 9:13) before starting her chores, the most important of which was preparing her aunt's tea.
Just as Aurelia was arranging the last of the sugar cubes on her aunt's tray, she heard a loud thump and a deep bellow from upstairs.
"Aurelia!" It was shrill and trill and sent a chill up the spine of many a people. Aurelia had grown used to it and walked towards the room which smelled heavily of cinnamon and moth balls. (Aurelia liked to imagine she'd call it cinnaballs should she harvest it and market a line of aromatherapy candles with the scent- candles she knew no sane person would care to buy.)
"My spot of tea, dear," the older woman cooed from her oversized chair in the corner of her bedroom.
"No spots on this pot, Auntie." Aurelia placed the silver service just to the left of her aunt and cheerfully dropped two lumps of sugar in the cup she had prepared. "I just polished it this morning."
Aurelia's aunt, who was in the habit of adding the letter s to the front of certain words to make them sound more regal (an inexplicable habit, sto sbe ssure) ignored the gentle ribbing from her niece and turned to her giant Persian cat.
"Oh, sue me!" she exclaimed, knowing the cat would understand her exhaustion from housing such an ungrateful orphan with such grace and poise.
Umi, for his part, peeked at Gloria with one eye, recognizing his name, then fell back into an aloof semi-consciousness.
"My dear child," Gloria pursed her lips in disdain and stared at Aurelia's house dress. "What in the high heavens are you swearing?" differently.
"The strain, my child, the strain!" Gloria held her hands up above her head and her eyes bulged like those of a bullfrog, causing the veins in her neck to appear quit strained indeed
"What strain?"
"The strain!" Gloria was now shouting. "Today we leave for Otono! By strain!"
Aurelia immediately checked the clock that rested on her auntie’s mantle. Already 11:11! A firm believere in superstition, Aurelia made a quick wish (that they would, in fact, make the train on time) before clucking her tongue and facing Gloria’s doorway. Which had upwards of a dozen suitcases, all waiting to be carried towards the carport and loaded into Gloria’s antiquated station wagon.
“We need to leave in only two hours, Auntie!” Aurelia scolded. “Had I not forgotten, I would’ve woken you hours ago. Please have your bath quickly, we have a lot yet to do.”
“Of course, darling.” Gloria cooed over her teapot, yet showed no inclination to move. “Just be a dear and get my sluggage into the scar for me. I’ll be clean as a whistle in a moments notice.”
Picking up two of the bags, Aurelia’s mind was running so quickly that she almost didn’t hear Gloria’s voice echoing down the stairwell after her.
“And that dress, my dear! You must swear something nicer!”
“I’ll swear that woman will drive me batty one of these days, “Aurelia grumbled to herself as she heaved the bags into the old auto.
When they reached the train station, it was already 3:33 and they had but twelve minutes to pick up their tickets and check their luggage (thirteen bags for Miss Gloria and only one for young Aurelia) before their train pulled into the station.
“By my sword!” Gloria sighed as she fit her bulk uncomfortably into the compartment reserved for their two day journey. “I almost thought we wouldn’t make it.”
“And by my word, I just knew we would.” Aurelia grinned. “Why don’t you lie down and rest, Auntie? I’ll go find us some water and maybe a light snack.”
“Excellent plan, Sorry.” (I regret to inform you that due to Aunt Gloria’s pesky habit, Aurelia’s childhood nickname of “Auri” was pronounced most regrettably by the silly old broad.)
As Aurelia slipped from the quarters, she nearly stepped on a girl hunched against the door to the adjacent cabin. A grin rested on her face, not stretching from ear to ear, as some are wont to do, but simply enjoying the spotlight front and center.
“Oh my!” Aurelia started as she stumbled over the girl’s outstretched right leg. “I almost plowed right into you! I’m sorry, please excuse me.”
“No apologies necessary. Life is good.”
She stood to face Aurelia and brushed off the seat of her faded jeans. “Name’s Sonrisa, pleased to meet you, and just who might you be?”
Her smile didn’t falter once in the entire time she addressed Aurelia and her eyes stood attention as she waited for her answer.
“I’m Aurelia.” And just for good measure she added, “I’m eleven years old.”
Sonrisa held out a hand, which Aurelia gave a tentative shake. Before she could speak, her stomach did it for her, letting out a low grumble that made her cheeks flush with embarrassment.
“I’m on my way to the snack car,” Aurelia shrugged. “Sounds like you might want to join me.”
“Wish I could, Aurelia-“
“Call me Auri.”
“Okay. Well, Auri, as I was saying. I just don’t have any spare money for the dining car. Sure wish I did, though, I think my mom packed us some tuna fish sandwiches, and there’s nothing that’ll turn your stomach quicker than three tuna subs in one small room. I came out here just to avoid snack time in case my guess proved true.”
Aurelia looked down to her feet and dug in her pockets to see if by some miracle, there might be an extra dollar or two from the last time she wore them. Of course, there wasn’t, but something just to the right of her feet caught her eye.
“Aha!” She bent to pluck the five dollar bill off the ground. “Your wish is my command, Sonrisa!”
“Call me Soni.”
“Soni and Auri? I like it.”
Sonrisa’s smile brightened as she regarded the five dollar bill. Then it faded away almost as quickly.
“But don’t you think we ought to return that?”
“To whom?” Aurelia gestured to her right and left, but all the doors were closed and nobody else stood in the hallway. “This money has no identification on it, plus whoever lost it probably doesn’t know it’s gone! As far as we know, somebody wanted you to have this.”