“Well, what a start,” I subconsciously said out loud as the stage it up and the complex dance moves were carried out by the group of 7 men on stage. It was probably some time around 8:30 pm but I wasn’t going to check the time. My only focus was the stage and trying to get a grasp on reality. I’m here. I’m really here I thought. I did have to ask anyone if this was actually happening because I could tell by their smiles, sweat, and music, it was all real. I knew it by the passion emitting from the stage.

When I was exploring space through a screen, everything was fine. Now, going into space, everything is not okay. Working at NASA is a big thing, but so is going into space. No one ever asked me how I felt about being an astronaut. They just shipped me off to Baylor with my major already picked. I never thought I’d be an astronaut. You might be saying to yourself, “What is so bad about being an astronaut?” Well, I am deathly afraid of heights and I thought, “Well, what a start.”

We were all stressed. I was excited for our vacation, but all I can think about is how we were going to miss our plane. There was a long line for Security, and the moment we were free we ran to our gate. Lizzie tripped and hurt her knee, making her start to cry, slowing us all down. As we ran by we all eyed the restaurants we passed. We were very hungry but there was no way we could stop. We finally made it, just in time…and as we ran in I thought, “Well, what a start.”

“Mom?”

I tried it out to see how it would work. It felt rough on my tongue, like sandpaper. The word  mom can only be matched with one image, my real mom. Brown hair, blue eyes, pale skin. Not the image of Mrs. Thomson. Platinum blonde hair, green eyes, and cream skin.

“Noah?”

I snapped to attention, my arm knocking my uneaten pasta to the floor where Bailey the bulldog ate it. I covered my face with my hands. This wouldn’t have happened if my parents hadn’t died. I sighed and thought, “Well, what a start to my new life.”

And I thought, “Well, what a start,” as I squatted to pee right by the litter box. Not in the litter box, by the litter box. Finally, the human is gone. How I can sit on a couch even though she tells me not to! Then, I licked my self for awhile. All of a sudden, I heard a “Ruff!” I quickly leapt out the window landing gracefully and silently in the courtyard. I heard a “Lola!” I craned my head to see my human coming out of the car and toward me angrily, so I nonchalantly pranced back to the apartment.

Thump. Thump. Thump. that’s the sound my shoes made as they hit the ground. I remember the wind hitting my face and gaining more speed with each step. But now I’m laying down in a hospital bed with a broken leg and I thought, “well, what a start.”

The doctor walks into the room I am in and says, “You got a concussion when your head hit the ground and another runner accidentally ran over your leg, which already got hurt when you fell down causing the break to be even worse than it was to start.”

Oh no!

Our first unit of the year, Facing Challenges, will help us to answer the following questions:

• What steps must be taken to face a challenge?
• How do you define normal?
• Why are some people limited by challenges while others are propelled by them?

Together we will read novels where the main characters overcome tremendous obstacles. These novels will serve as models for our own realistic fiction writing. During the months of September and October we will prepare as writers for NaNoWriMo, or National Novel Writing Month. As you grow as authors, you will post your writing here to inspire, not only one another, but the world around you.