a day in the life; Cecilia Attwood 10 years old

The sun creeped across the room from the north facing window, across the row of beds waking the younger girls. There were ten of them in this room, five beds with metal frames and thin mattresses lining the two long walls of the room. Just enough space between them to walk down the center. With a sigh Cecilia pushed the ratty cover away climbing out of the bed. The mistress hadn’t come by yet. That was good, today was Saturday, set aside for cleaning . With a sigh Cec pulled the sheet up and made the bed tucking it tightly like those described in books about military barracks. The mistress liked everything to be nice and tidy around the orphanage, Cecilia had seen other girls learn this the hard way.

The girl had been here her whole life. She had seen others come and gone. She gave up hope of ever leaving a long time ago, around her sixth year. This was now her tenth. She only had eight more years left before she would be an adult and set free from this drab hole that was meant to be a home. All she had to do was stay out of trouble and she wouldn’t have to go through the anger she had seen the mistress express when the girls didn’t do as they were told.  Up with the sun, make the bed, brushed hair tied back neatly into a braid, hands scrubbed clean and teeth brushed before breakfast. After breakfast it was time for chores, the list always seemed to grow. Each girl got assigned a room each year, this year Cec’s was the bathroom along with two other girls from her room. Clean the toilets, wipe the mirrors, scrub the showers, sweep and mop the floors. Everything was to sparkle with cleanliness. If the girls finished their chores by lunch they would have all afternoon to do as they wished around the grounds. If they did not, or if the mistress was not happy with the job they had done… First they would be denied lunch, then once it was done and met the mistress wants then they would be punished. As if withholding their measly lunch wasn’t enough.  
The punishments the mistress came up with would vary. Sometimes it was just a smack on the back of the hand, others…. Cecilia didn’t like to think of the others, when her thoughts dared stray to the times she had witnessed the fury her stomach churned. She dared not to think of such things while working today, having to clean up tears or vomit would only take longer and probably cause more trouble than she wanted. The girl just wanted to finish with today's chores so she could get back to the book she had been reading. It was a wonderful story filled with magic. Witches, Dragons, castles, a princess locked in a tower. Cec loved the escape from this place that the books she read provided her, a small glimpse of happiness. She smiled as she worked quietly.

Luckily the other girls in her cleaning group worked just as diligently as Cecilia did today. Before the sun had reached the highest point in the sky the room was clean, and Cecs hands were dry from the soaps they used causing the skin to begin to crack. Looking at her hands Cecilia sighed, this only happened in the winter time which was nice, but for now it was not pleasant. At least it was better than anything the mistress could think up. With a nod of her head to the other girls she left the room and headed toward the library.

Cecilia found her favorite spot, a chair placed in the corner of the dimly lit room next to a lamp, two clicks to turn it on. A deep breath filled her lungs with the smell of old books. This was her happy place, a place where she could just be, a place she could visit new lands and explore to her heart's content. She sat here curled up with her book, drinking the text in as if it were just as important as drinking water.  

She did not move from this spot until the sun began to set, and her stomach began to complain. It was almost time for dinner. Closing the book she headed up to clean up. Freshly washed face and hands scrubbed clean, nothing else would be accepted at the table. Dinner that night was stewed meat with potatoes and carrots, and a slice of hearty bread. The other girls around her spoke in hushed tones just above a whisper, but Cecilia sat quietly pushing the food around her plate between bites, her head tucked down not making eye contact with her peers. Once dinner had finished and the dining hall was cleaned for the day the girls returned to their beds one by one turning in for the night.

Cecilia Attwood; age 9

It was a crisp Monday morning in June, and the sun shone brightly through the open windows of the orphanage. The air was fresh and clean, and the entire building seemed to glow with a newfound sense of purpose. The mistress of the orphanage, Miss Wormwood, had been particularly diligent over the weekend in ensuring that the place was spotless. Today was a special day, for potential parents would be visiting the orphanage in the hopes of finding children to adopt. Everything had to be perfect.

As usual, young Cecilia had finished her daily chores and retreated to the library to lose herself in a book. Today's selection was "The Throne of Fire," a thrilling adventure that had captured her imagination. Lost in the pages of the book, Cecilia was oblivious to the visitors wandering through the halls of the orphanage, eyeing the children like merchandise in a shop window.

When Miss Wormwood discovered Cecilia in the library, she was not pleased. Cecilia was her least favorite child, as strange things always seemed to happen whenever the girl was around. With an impatient click of her heels on the cold floor, Miss Wormwood snatched the book from Cecilia's hands and tossed it into the nearby fireplace.

What happened next was a blur to Cecilia. Suddenly, all the books on the shelves began to fly at Miss Wormwood, pelting her with pages and covers. The mistress was incensed, and in her anger, she locked Cecilia in a small, dark closet at the back of her office. Cecilia could hear the muffled sounds of the orphanage bustling with activity outside, but she was alone in the oppressive darkness.

After what seemed like an eternity, Miss Wormwood returned and released Cecilia from her confinement. But the punishment was not yet over. Cecilia was forced to spend the rest of the evening picking up all the books and returning them to their rightful places on the shelves before being allowed to eat a cold dinner in silence.

As she sat in the library that night, long after everyone else had gone to bed, Cecilia couldn't help but feel a sense of loneliness and isolation. She wondered what it would be like to have a family of her own, a place where she could feel safe and loved. But for now, all she had was the comfort of her books and her own imagination.