Those 10 Years went FAST!

Peaceful right?

Hey Superhero! As I write this, you're about to turn 27 in a few days. According to my plan, by this age you should have been engaged to your best friend, editing Glamour Magazine and sipping colorful martinis at posh nightspots in Manhattan. None of that happened. I hope it never happened. That's not really who you are. You spent a long time trying to fit yourself into the box of what you thought you wanted, when really, that wouldn't have made you as happy as you liked to waste your time imagining it would. Now it's April 22, 2021. You're an energetic, accomplished 37 year old who dresses well, albeit a bit eccentrically, but not over the top. I hope you're writing. A lot. Way more than you were 10 years ago. You've published a book of poems, haven't you? I bet you're in the New Yorker all the time. You're probably a Pulitzer Prize winner or poet laureate of the world. I hope you're still riding your motorcycle (and that it's bigger and faster now and also that it's a personal spacecraft!). I hope you've traveled all over the world, writing, meeting people and experimenting with your life. Do we have a house in Spain? I hope we have a house in Spain. If we don't, get on that, please. I hope you finished your 30 Before 30, are nearly finished your 40 Before 40 and have written your 50 Before 50. I hope none of those lists repeated any items. I'm excited to see what you come up with and how 10 years has changed your perspective on life and what you want out of it. I hope you do nice things for other people every day. I hope Muldoon is still around. He'll be almost 12. Harley would be almost 19 now... I hope you know she loved you and that she never thought you failed her or yourself. It was silly to ever think that and I don't know why or how she got connected to all that pain, but she loved you in a way that was supernatural for animals to even feel. I hope you got over feeling like you disappointed her. You didn't. Ever. I hope it's been 9 years since you've even thought about him. And I'm sorry for making you think about him now. I bet Harley forgot all about him. He was never the man he led you believe he was and he certainly wasn't deserving of all that love and admiration you gave him. I hope he's happy with wherever he is in life, but I also hope you don't know whether he is or not because I hope you haven't spoken in... almost 12 years now. I hope you have no idea who I'm talking about! I hope you still play video games unapologetically and wear heels regularly. I hope you laugh all the time with friends new and old who nourish your life with love and culture and new ideas. It's probably as weird for you to imagine me, your old self, as it is for me to imagine you, myself a decade from now. I can't even see a month into the future! Anyway, stay awesome. Let go and take what life gives you. Take action to get what it doesn't. See you in another 10 years! Alison

Epilogue

2 days later

Hi Alison,

I was not expecting this today. You sure had a vision of our future! I'm happy to report that the best parts all came true. Not without pain...

Eosm you etvngieyrh nad erisrtiipo !ti uoy sgutgler, hgouth( got uoy adtwen h)ncdgea but idd. .
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In viel do we anntmhaat. Stnuid het iledv dha ityc ahd ni inudgr hpeos uroy ouy readchs vleea adn cesueba teh het nda ekbro tujs you uyo yrou enwh sunyn othhutg ot tampraten you gor,ueosg a uyo elave nad mesdra iacousps lcoohs ltso a retha eno - lckbso rfom temnprtaa to evha adrg we tkamre ucpelo het. Hnikt tub ouy yda mih ,syrro ervey aoubt 'mi lsatmo do lslit. 'ventah lltsi oyu esonkp ot imh giana. Won ihwt es'h rrdemai a bbay. Ti atht uoy utufre bene erwnod htaw a dwolu ikle hiwt heav yuo in olt uotab. Hte rewe resya tsla towryh rvpeo to psden htat mih ot you irntyg 10 uyo. You alwyas erwe. Hthutog onseome atth and imh oatbu yuo yuo oyu he ohw rognw drupo no fo ltruy be btu bemace ot e,erw erounyj nca roepv lvoe. So eb olduw rduop os you. Urpod era you so. .
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A iterw remo otl oyu. En'etrw ew ouy aevh btu aoper orkc opyter au,mstboi(i retiw nad etsadtr loevn a a nda w)lasya?. Otn pihslebud, si't lilts tye utb ogal a. Fo 'ellw as os tub lhiupbs a lru,mago ouy iefbr rewit ncuot meda ekli nsiiobusms sddenuo cytealilc)hn ddi a hatt rfo yuo ttha teaginrmh rof reven lu,goarm did on,ce a ercaer yuo rweto yeth(. Chte giedinma hpat ynmpoca ni oryue' smieavs in a wikrnog a on ,sditeex ediam orf vener eangmkirt closai ucnloigtns uyo. Olve ti yuo. Rae and yiirncdebl ruoy ksoowrrce rmtas irevupotps. Vetfraio dm,apcnie fo oruy you dies suabcee gte eht ihwt yb het yrou lcal oyu to rysntuaca work wno mnduolo pleac - - epantartm uyro romf. .
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Dmlouno si drunoa lsilt. 12 dna eh eb lwil acncer usmmer tihs aetb. Eht on nma ettser an leppeo hes' libeeve ctna' old. God tllsi the dan a in eh ahs hte estahpip igenb ptnaitreuo iebrodhgoonh pyppu rof egenyr. Hrmca ni aylehr alts reya paseds. Asw 18 dan was esh ehs aedyr. Teh loev hucm asct nad ehs so fiamly eorth lal uvitdoel eth ni geva. Oomstrmae neco inot own ujst uyo logn uyo ot ti eno nad nyc twhi lcbkso attamp,rne ivlde razcy esh kmae ees you ot saemdoy kcba seadhr erh omve hunego hre rfom mriposde oudy' teh nad ruyo. Yaczr is't. Noe rhe i snioerghb ertfa etm yaerhl hte of and ea,spsd god. . . Elayrh medna. Lluflfi uyo ehs was thta soemipr. .
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The we beki on teh lsdo coroctemly a( ni ?yt?ic tsaknh)!. Eth in illst rongiwk ewre' on snpia ncodo. Uoy ouy ot ahtt ni acn tog fl,ibyer dah ocoshl het on ygu dr,mreia believe hgue ghhi urhcs we if tath. Sles you eturnd he na updlle ntha rfousyle htta oloclciah a eb aebsiuv tou and ot tuo erya ni fo. Otn ureoy' rvye ta eyhhtal gkpiinc sudint nseic iaeohnripstls gdoo. Ndma ngsile emit!s been atth ayw won, yue'ro eevr ntah but egaegnd ehret vey'uo pehirap. Heav na veor rmof ni owh lal a konnw epprtusiov aer rvnee fednsir awy ceniilderb of yeouv' ropgu oyu. .
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Sitoldea clilyeaeps duonlmo and ihelw atls yuo jstu u'vyoe wtgrho and in eepd teh emsneim hda tia,nueanrq ehagnil, ni yera. Lidyfentei ti wne th,tciw tmhe nad fsreind ahve orme adn mte ertmsa gmsae a sllit - devio eenv doing you tuogrhh oyu amek msaeg etllti aginazm osrvuia no emony payl. Ouy od afr of awth uyo yojne ssrtes less dna eomr. .
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5;0 we and fbeero 05 ctubke we haev a seimt stli hvae stlmoa a onlg hnat noggiwr oerm 001. A dan tiexignc itrnngu dsa was lttiel 73. A orf but be lliw hte elf,t hucm a feli tres os ookl fo tlsli dascr twvreahe soseimlent oyu streeh' teh sdepn dongi lal s'otned elki letitl nad ti it so ibg rea can eovr leik in uyo sfele ti kiel su het afylim. Obko hsifin atht. Snpia to og. Eth stionecntn tivis lla. Yuro euebcsa watn yev'uo ebngi media peke leif dniog ynmtmucio bene a uaotb lulf ateuhinct all dbilu od ngloa ocalsi ouy eewhvrat on ouy it dan nviigl yo!u acn ayoeocllalpgti. .
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Shde' ni vhae rapetpd yaw os eddrame 71 us kbac obatu tnow rerots amsll ucdlo i ttha seh seh het eltl ehlwi raye ew ldo and og lief swih tlfe. .
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Olve i ouy. So i ma tarulefg uyo fro. Rvene you pu gvea. Ekpt ouy nhguips. Yoln rea hwo reihl,orb ouy scussec to siht oryst a rvvdusie uoy oesw fesherl meso inuheos and ti. Do ou,t ojnye ew ot r'wee hwarvete gniog adn mrof ginog ikck to hcum r'eew ssa heer os ti no. Awy nad of nad eb as lwil no fviggiron ew ntietap cnneoreut het etohs we ,idnk swa,ayl. .
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Voe,l.
Ila yb og )now we( ali.

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