A Rainy Morning

Sofia knew she was running late when she heard the rain against her bedroom window. It might rain all morning, so she hurried through breakfast, found her red umbrella and left with her lunch bag under one arm. The pavement was covered in puddles, and the bus stop was already crowded.

As she approached, she saw her bus waiting at the traffic lights. She walked faster, but the doors closed just as she reached the stop. For a moment, Sofia stood in the rain, annoyed with the driver and with herself. She had spent five minutes looking for her keys, and now she might be late for work.

The timetable said the next bus would arrive in twelve minutes. She checked her phone. Her first meeting was at ten, so she still had enough time if the traffic wasn’t too bad. The traffic might get worse and the next bus might be full, but staring at the road would not help. Instead, she took out the small notebook she used for work.

She wrote down three tasks: finish the report, call a client and buy coffee for the meeting. Then she sent her colleague a quick message: “Missed my bus. I might be a few minutes late, but I should be there before ten.” The reply came at once: “No problem. See you soon.”

When the next bus arrived, Sofia was cold and her shoes were wet. Still, she felt calmer. She hadn’t made the rain stop or brought the first bus back. She had simply checked the facts and made a plan for the morning.