Angie glanced at the clock on the wall. “I’m so sorry Tess, but I’ll have to go soon.”

I nodded. I understood that time was not on Angie’s side. The cafe was short-staffed – hence the delay with our lunch – and my friend needed to return to work. We used to be call centre colleagues.

We’d worked for an energy company and we’d dealt with difficult customers. Angie still did. It was a stressful occupation, so I didn’t exactly envy Angie.

When our lunch finally arrived to our table (with a side order of an apology) Angie gulped back her tea and wrapped her sandwich in a large napkin, to take away.

She then shrugged on her jacket. “I’m really sorry about this but we’ll meet as usual, next Friday lunchtime.”

I smiled. “Don’t worry about it. I know how it is. Take care. Bye!”

Angie waved as she headed for the door. My mind flew back… me, Angie and Lisa had started work at the same time at Energo. Being the same age (mid-forties) and married, the three of us had hit it off and every Friday, as a little end of week treat, we went to a cosy cafe for a nice lunch. We’d all worked well together for just over a decade, until things changed. Eight months ago, Lisa had made an announcement.

“My husband and I moving to the Yorkshire dales to run a B&B. Call it a mid-life crisis but we want to do something different. We’ve put the house on the market. I’ll work my notice here, and when the house sells, we’ll be off!”

Crikey. A brand-new life and gorgeous scenery to boot… how lovely!

“We’ll miss you so much!” I cried.

She wiped away tears. “I’ll miss you two, too!”

Angie and I were sorry to see her go. However, once she’d settled in, Lisa invited me and my hubby Tom to stay – plus, Angie (and her hubby) of course. The invite arrived out of season, so they had plenty of spare rooms. I promised faithfully that we would, but we were rushed off our feet at work… yet Angie and I managed to keep in touch with Lisa. A few cheery ‘How are you?’ lines dashed off in an email was better than nothing. Strangely, the company didn’t hire anyone to take over Lisa’s role. We soon discovered why… they were bringing in a series of voluntary redundancies.

Tom had recently retired, so I decided to take up the company’s offer. It’d be good to escape the stress and Tom and I could take the opportunity to travel. I’d love to visit my sister, her husband and her family in Australia. They had emigrated there. I hadn’t seen her for years and my niece and nephew were growing up fast. She was always begging us to come and stay. There was only one snag. Tom didn’t like flying.

At work, when I announced that I was leaving, Angie had looked sad.

“We can still meet for lunch on Fridays,” she’d put in.

I’d smiled. ‘Thanks. I’d like that.”

We did, and she’d continued to fill me in on office gossip. Yet sometimes I felt my attention wandering. Well, it wasn’t my world any more, was it? I didn’t mean to sound uncaring but why would I be bothered about Anna’s disastrous dates, Paul’s driving lessons or Barry’s ongoing indigestion?

That first Monday morning lie-in was bliss – yet I realised that I needed something to do. It was a nice, sunny day so I packed a flask and joined Tom on his allotment. The allotment had kept him occupied and he’d become friendly with all the folk there.

“Hello love.” He was pleased to see me, yet I sensed a subtle distance.

Later, I learnt that he preferred to keep his hobby separate. He didn’t really want me involved. That was fine – I had to respect that.

“We could visit my sister and her family in Australia, now I’m not working,” I suggested that evening over dinner.

He pulled a face. “You know how I feel about long-haul flights, Tess. I hate flying in general, anyway.”

“I know but look, what if we broke the journey and stayed for a week at the half way point?” I suggested.

“Hmm. Let me have a think about it.”

“Then there’s Lisa in the Yorkshire dales -”

“Calm down, love. I realise that you’re free as a bird now but there’s no need to suddenly dash here, there and everywhere,” he chuckled.

It was a fair point. Later, I mulled things over. Perhaps I’d been hasty in accepting voluntary redundancy? I didn’t miss the problem-solving element attached to my job but I missed the daily work routine and yes, I admit that I missed company.

Well, if travel wasn’t on the agenda maybe I should look for another job, I thought.

A part-time one would be good – it wouldn’t absorb all my energy, and I’d be able to pursue a hobby. I still had my Friday lunches with Angie to look forward to!

Yet when I arrived at the cafe on Friday, Angie wasn’t there. It was our usual time… my mind whirled. I hadn’t had a text, saying, she’d be late. I sighed. I knew how it was – we’d get caught up with a client over the phone and couldn’t get away… the cafe was crowded, yet I managed to find a spare seat. Then a text came in – but it wasn’t from Angie. It was Tom.

“Okay. Let’s go to Oz,” he said.

My heart leapt. Great! I reckoned that a long weekend in the Yorkshire dales beckoned, too!

Back to the cafe…as it was busy, my table hadn’t been cleared. So, I gathered the empty mugs and took them to the counter.

The woman smiled. “Oh, many thanks!”

I then made a sudden, impulsive, decision.

“Look, I know this out of the blue, but what if I did a voluntary shift for you, right here, right now?”

The idea had come from nowhere – yet it could fit the bill.

Her face lit up. “Would you? I recognise you – you’re a regular customer. You come in every Friday.”

I nodded. “That’s right.”

“Well, yes please to helping out. If you do well today, I could be offering you a part-time job, er -”

I beamed. “Tess.”

“I’m Kate. Pleased to meet you. I’ll need to check your references but in-the-meantime, here’s a spare apron. Table three’s order should be ready in the kitchen.”

I nodded but before I could tie my apron, another text bleeped. This time it was Angie, saying sorry, she’d had to work, so would miss our lunch. I vowed to buy her a sandwich and pop round to Energo when I could. Then I switched my phone off, stored it safely in my bag and got cracking.

Three hours later, I was thrilled when Kate offered me the job! That really made my day!

“Hello Kate! It’s good to see you again. How’s things?” Jill began.

Kate smiled. “It’s good to see you, too. Things are fine.”

Things weren’t fine, but Kate felt reluctant to confide in her. After all, Kate didn’t know Jill that well. After all, she’d only met Jill once before, at a big motivational talk event last year. This was an anniversary catch- up event, held in the same conference centre. Kate had received a reminder e-mail. Her mind flew back to the year before…

The speaker was a charismatic, glamorous, highly successful IT business owner called Eleanor Craven. She’d eagerly hung onto Eleanor’s every word. The talk was so inspiring!

When they broke for lunch, Kate found herself in the queue next to Jill in the conference centre’s cafe.

“I hope you don’t mind me asking but what do you think of the talk?” she asked.

“To be honest with you, I only came in to get out of the rain,” she confessed.

“Did you? Hi. I’m Kate.”

“I’m Jill. As for the talk – well, Eleanor certainly makes a good impression,” she went on.

“If you don’t mind me saying, you sound kind of cynical,” Kate remarked.

Jill pulled a face. “Well, these sorts of talks are basic pick-me-ups, aren’t they?”

Kate was taken aback. “How can you say that? I found it totally life changing!”

“How is Eleanor’s speech going to change your life?” Jill enquired.

“I don’t know yet,” she spluttered. “But I’ll be buying Eleanor’s book later on. Why not stay and listen to the second half of the talk? It’s free.”

“Is it still raining out?” Jill asked.

Kate peered out of the window.

“Yes. It’s pouring down,” Kate replied.

So, Jill stayed.

When the talk ended, Kate had tried to find Jill, but she’d melted away in the crowd…never mind. Kate was so fired up with passion and enthusiasm. She was determined to launch a brand-new enterprise! If she worked hard, she was sure to reap the rewards.

Back on the main stage, once again, Eleanor Craven had told everyone they could make their dreams come true… then it was breaktime.

“Do you fancy a coffee?” Jill asked Kate.

Kate nodded and they headed towards the cafe. When Jill went to the counter, Kate reflected. Sadly, all of her grand plans had come to nothing. The online vintage jewellery idea hadn’t generated enough profit, the sandwich delivery business hadn’t got off the ground, and the new art concept had sunk without a trace. She eventually took her parent’s advice and found a proper job, but the admin post bored her to tears. When her boss wasn’t about, Kate had whiled away the hours by setting up an anonymous blog. Titled ‘The tedious life of an office girl’, it had attracted a lot of followers. The social media links placed on the blog had helped spread the word. Even though it was only a small project, Kate had created it herself. She felt proud of her secret success.

As Jill returned, a thought occurred to her. If Jill hadn’t found Eleanor’s original talk helpful or interesting, why was she here today?

“How’s your year been?” Kate began.

“Not bad,” Jill answered. “I’ve been working on an idea.”

“Tell me more.” Kate sipped her coffee.

“Well, I’ve self- published a little e-book,” Jill replied.

“That sounds intriguing. What’s your book about?”

“The second half of Eleanor’s talk left quite an impact on me,” Jill admitted. “I went away and thought about what I’d like to achieve.”

“Go on,” Kate urged.

“I bought her book, too. It inspired me to create and innovate,” Jill went on. “Energise and focus.”

Kate recognised Eleanor’s motivational speak jargon.

“And?” Kate was agog.

Jill reached for her bag, whipped a tablet out, switched it on and showed Kate the screen. “So, I wrote a motivational book of my own! It’s called ‘Words of Wisdom.’ It’s selling quite well. I’m planning a website, and I’d like to set up a blog.”

“That’s brilliant news!” Kate beamed. “Well done.”

Kate was amazed – yet Jill looked thoughtful.

“I don’t suppose you know anyone who’s good on social media and blogging? I need someone to help me promote the book,” she explained. Her spirit soared. Talk about stumbling across an unexpected opportunity! Kate took a deep breath. She needed to sell herself here. She recalled the confidence techniques from Eleanor and launched in.

“I’m familiar with all social media platforms,” Kate replied. “I blog, too. Have you heard of a blog called ‘The tedious life of an office girl?’ That’s me.”

“Really? I’m one of your followers. So, that smart, funny blog writer, is you?” Jill was amazed.

Kate nodded.

‘The energy companies have raised their prices yet again, Fay!’ Mrs Woods, my senior citizen neighbour exclaimed, as she spotted me on my doorstep. She was clutching her latest paper bill. The postie had just delivered the mail.

‘Well, everyone’s in the same boat,’ I soothed. ‘I’m late for work, Mrs Woods. I’ll catch up with you later!’

On the way to work, I pondered. Should I give Mrs Woods a part of my windfall? I hugged a secret. I’d recently won £1,000 on a scratch card! I could have announced the news at work.

Everyone would be pleased for me of course, yet it would only be a matter of time when colleagues would begin to drop hints about sharing my winnings with them. If I ever won a significant amount on the lotto, I’d thought it would be good to treat family and friends, plus donate to a charity.

So, why did I hesitate to share my good fortune with the call centre crowd?

Well, the single office gals enjoyed splashing their spare salary on clothes, shoes, hair, nails, beauty treatments, make- up, perfume, handbags and going out socialising. They worked hard and it was up to them how they spent it, yet… it all seemed kind of shallow to me. Put it simply, they’d fritter any extra income away on themselves. Was this really a wise way to spend it? So, for the moment, I kept the news to myself.

The thing was, I didn’t particularly want or need anything for myself. I’ve a full- time job, a furnished flat and plenty of clothes and shoes. I earn enough to cover the basics such as rent, bills and food plus extra for little treats here and there (like scratch cards!) Unlike my workmates, I’m saver, not a spender. A donation to a local charity was a good option. But which charity? There were so many…but then Mrs Wood’s recent bill worry preyed on my mind.

I ended up confiding in Leah, my best friend.

‘Well Fay, you know the saying. Charity begins at home,’ she declared.

I frowned. Did it?

‘I know! Let’s book a holiday to Spain. If you cover the flights and self-catering accommodation, I’ll pay for the food, insurance and any extras.’

Hmm… it’d just be frittering it again, wouldn’t it? I mused.

‘I’ll think about it,’ I muttered.

‘I’ve won some money on a scratch card,’ I stated nervously at Sunday lunch to Mum, dad and my sister, Jen.

‘Ooh, what a nice surprise for you, love!’ Mum was pleased.

‘Lovely!’ Dad grinned.

‘How much have you won?’ Jen asked.

‘A grand. But I don’t know what to do with it,’ I said.

Jen grinned. ‘In that case, give it to me. I can spend it for you.’

I ignored her.

‘Mum, you’d enjoy a weekend city break, wouldn’t you? Dad, how about refreshing the garden with some new plants?’

Mum smiled. ‘That’s kind of you, love, but there’s no need to waste it on us.’

‘You mum’s right, we don’t need it, Fay.’ Dad’s tone was firm.

‘Leah wants me to book a sun-soaked holiday for two,’ I said.

‘You don’t sound very keen.’ Mum was concerned.

‘Well, if you don’t fancy it, I’ll go with Leah to Spain instead,’ Jen piped up.

I ignored her again.

‘Why not save it?’ Dad suggested.’ You never know when the washing machine or fridge will break down.’

He had a point, but my kitchen appliances were fairly new, and I had savings to cover that, anyway.

What on earth was I going to do?

In the end, I decided to split the money: £500 to a local homeless charity, £100 to Mrs Woods, £100 to Leah, £100 to mum and £100 to dad and £100 to Jen.

Although Leah and Jen had expected more, when I explained how I’d shared it, they didn’t object.

Although we might dream of windfalls, I mused, if we’re lucky and don’t need anything, deciding how to use the cash wisely can become a hassle. I was so relieved when I finally reached a decision!