A letter from Sep 18, 2022

Peaceful right?

Dear FutureMe, hey! happy eighteenth birthday!! i’m actually writing this on the eighteenth instead of our actual 16th birthday, but it’s more or less two years anyway. how are things? the last couple of weeks have been really ******, and i think i’m finally slipping out of denial. i miss grandad. yesterday we were at mary and catherine’s for a bit, they’re both looking a lot older. maybe that’s just me. anyway, how was australia? only like 75 days to go for me!! i’m doing work experience at the gaelscoil right now, it’s cool. nicola referred to us both as the adults in the room and it made me giggle. are you still friends with bella, tara, tiernan, conor etc? i still hate bella’s friends but what can you do. are you in a relationship yet? how were the junior cert results? there’s still no clarification on when they’re coming out. i just hope i do well in science. do you still want to study neuroscience? i hope donall and grainne are good. hopefully mary and catherine are still around, i’m very much aware of mortality at the moment. if they aren’t, i’m so sorry. i don’t want to go to school tomorrow. we have to do boxing or something lol, would rather die. i hope life is treating you well. you (aged 16 and one day)

Epilogue

1 day later

16 year old ash, you would not believe how much has changed. those 75 days until you go to australia? not only did they go quick, but we ended up...

Moevd so ti hatt ew ntnyermepla mhcu olngvi here,. Rsiefdn ti nuridg taflubu,ei adn oruy ahd it eenv so uyo ede,dn teh tsbe ftsir ghotuh were avhe ,dah ,vole ouy was ti uoy dna ayhpp rvee v'yeou. Wno uoleplyfh oto! lwel nad nwe evha heltly' ,pecptosrs yuo og.
.
Rea erwe nda cetienrah oyu rmya old,re girth. Itwh ouy dan inflgwloo the ahd yuor ni puptsor eptns oyu btu btidsrnfee best ohme eth rmay go ystsem, - for hosa syad m,ya 'udlocnt nda dedi het ueanlrf. So uprotps enve mcuh essproc a earesi kmeas i,t to hinvyrtgee uretnylcr uhhotg etsyms mi' llist angvih unglrgtsig. Sukc,ed umhc shti yuo ti aws - to osal lkoo to the ahve ayer tbse so dfwrora btu. Tsom i of 71 and r,af eht lliw be iefindgn 18 too flei year ohep uroy os swa. Igneanr scmiu gran'nies at,ra are rwee' alslodn' i,nteran hredaawr dllaon tsl,li in tesnndraud arlley niugtsyd nad ,elbla - tslil ni ea,nrldi eevn ew dan rwkogin at emth ronoc sit igogn sdifrne rberietl ildubn at in ghthou e!wll texntgi ethy lelgeco rea ilwl tlisl eorst - dan eth. Ctre ew,re my at i aahh otn hawt do meemrebr yallre yhte lal not nuoirj tlurses tratme do. And ew ddi'tn eht ady do i xbn,goi xtne ltye,corrc fi ohlcso mmeberer the dpisepk ?rithg.
.
Tsi'n adn uorye' at niconedvc si omtenm, ru,secd a ugrho i rdyhbita eu'yro eht yruo nwko ti imte btu vainhg. Ot poleep, oyu'll anrle nda fleoryus gogin yp,hap you uryo 'uorey dna u'oyre fourlyes ot ot velo gngio idfn eevroney be danruo nda. Tppiesah uoy iudpts fo ofrm dna ihws eht ogynu tub sridatyhb fo yu,o vsoenir mdbu sllit wresi i a. Rbttee, osrpmei uoy ti tseg i.
.
Ropud ouy i'm fo. Dna ruoy hatt ogndi lla youer' ttsmrae thsta etbs. Hsa tdhabyri yare lod 61 hpayp.