A Different Monday

Elena works in a big office near the river. She takes the bus at eight and starts work at nine. But today is different. She is in a small café, and her laptop is on a table by the window.

“Why are you not at the office?” her friend Mitch asks on the phone. “There is no electricity there today,” Elena says. “I work here with a cup of coffee.” “Do you work in cafés?” “No, never,” she says.

Elena usually drinks tea, but today she has coffee because the café does not have her tea. A waiter brings toast. She does not eat breakfast at work, but today she is hungry.

Mitch usually answers emails slowly, but today he writes fast. “I like this change,” he says. “I am in my kitchen, and my cat is on my feet.” Elena laughs. “Does your cat help you?” “Never!”

At noon, the office has electricity again, but Elena does not go back. “I work well here,” she says. Outside, the sun is out. She smiles and writes a new message: “Maybe every Monday can be different.”