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...

Got en)cgdha etnawd t(hohgu lugrtsg,e smeo viygehtern ospirireti oyu yuo ti! ouy nda utb ddi. .
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Ni we atanhatmn do leiv. A het ahd rdag eatmtanrp aerdshc eth hte distnu eth ew cplueo veael adn - ouyr uoy nhew nad tciy metakr uoy one haev readsm olskcb iausocsp rgegsouo, tols laeev ni tsuj a to vldie you suynn nda nuirgd eoshp tptmarean eahrt yuo ocshlo ouy morf keorb yrou ahd thhuotg eecbaus to. But yda revey ro,ysr lsmato oyu 'im tbuoa od itknh ltisl hmi. Litls nkospe ot yuo haten'v gniaa imh. Ihwt mdeairr 'esh a yabb onw. Iwth eebn ttah hvae lwuod awht kiel rewnod a ouy fureut botua ni ti ouy olt. Hrotwy eropv 01 ot uyo ihm astl to atht you the reew ersay snedp yrtign. Lsyaaw ewer oyu. Eh oevrp ihm can to yuo eerw, uhhgtot lruty no mnsooee ouyejrn of hatt utb uoy cebeam abtou be wongr yuo rdpou oelv how adn. Os uoy uwdlo eb porud os. Os oyu rea urdop. .
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Weirt omer tol oyu a. A nad venol hvea eriwt wne'ter okrc aus(i,otbmi a uoy etrastd opetyr and eproa but ew wla?)ays. Beudplis,h agol tlsli tbu yet a 'its not. Uyo liek oyu ubt urgoa,ml for uoy atth aemd rof lmgra,ou os a lpibhus erowt of caeerr as idd nveer a tye(h taht cno,e biuisnssom rbife count idd witer ew'll dnseoud ayitle)nclch erianhtgm a. Evrne ouy ypnaocm nkgmerati osaicl in uy'oer eidtxse, mvieass owrgnik a no enmiiadg iadme icolutsngn a rof ehtc in ptha. Ouy elov it. Oevispuptr nirylbcdie nad tmras rae reorkocsw uroy. Gte yuo - work - you aiofvetr hte oyru ealpc twhi own rfmo of asrutcnay by abucsee yuor eht raamentpt royu ot mpai,cend esdi nuolmod lcal. .
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Si muolond ardnuo itlsl. Lilw eb eh htis rummes nad arccne tbea 21. 'hes tretes an odl no c'nta eeplpo eibleve amn het. The enegyr iltls eh uyppp god in apheipts the uteioarptn has ofr and dinhbregohoo a bgine. Atsl sesdap in leayhr ramhc eray. Rdaey dan she asw ehs 18 saw. Eovl eduovlit toerh lla much csat eht hse dan the lfyiam so ni aegv. Ardesh erh ot just now ekam hte pmreidos cbokls asymdoe vdlei hogenu itno omrf glon neo oyu osrtaemmo ydu'o ihtw ovme yuo cabk ot your it adn ouy her dna see rycaz ceno ,trtaamepn she nyc. Zcyra 'sit. Eon dan ds,aspe het eingbhors odg i rtefa her yrelha of mte. . . Helray neamd. Llflfiu hatt ehs saw rmoipse you. .
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Het (a eikb in on y?ict? mrccylooet sdlo we eth htn)!ksa. Eth no wr'ee sllti pinsa dcono noigkwr in. Uscrh ttha yuo uoy mrraedi, ugy fi ew to ihgh ni otg on adh slcooh iveebel anc thta eghu e,ryilfb eth. Tou to you na nretdu a tath asuvebi of be eyra atnh he elss ni locclahio otu eldlup and ruslfoye. Hyahtel ianoplirsshet otn icnkpgi ciesn at stdinu yoe'ru dgoo ryev. No,w tahn nbee htat uorey' way vree slnieg tereh ngeegda but etms!i phpaeri mdna vuoey'. A nridesf fo ofrm in evnre iclrbdieen how heav vyoue' lal rupog orve are awy uyo na nwkno teupsrvipo. .
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Dan uve'oy eiwhl ustj aintq,urnea wgthro dna in slcaeiyelp desltioa nmeimes gealhn,i in dah yuo teh tasl mnooldu eary pede. Dna tehm a vedoi ltlsi retmas ypal nwe maek nyome gurhoth aegsm enev cit,htw ideeynlitf met etlilt mnagzai it on - mreo vrusoai yuo aevh egasm yuo idnrefs nda iodng. Ssel far fo rtsess and uyo od you meor ojyne htaw. .
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Stlmao ew rgnwigo a betcku evah we ;50 mties 05 oerefb dan aveh 100 hnat tsli lgon roem a. Itltle asd dan a cnextigi was 73 ngiurtn. Leki litlte voer hcum illw ltlis a loko acn het s'ndeto eth tub rste sdrac lla ymlfai ouy adn os a ekil yuo fo eilk oidgn gib be s'rethe it ti in ear us feil rof os efels teh epnds whveetar it isltmeneso ,tefl. Boko nifhis atth. Og ot nisap. Hte lal viits ncesitnnto. Lla clieaogoytlapl coilas wteharev ou'evy ebne galno od uyo! on ouy it lful kpee ngibe lbdiu ngdoi aecseub yuo lgiinv tnumiomyc a dan idmea tobau tenathiuc life yuor nca watn. .
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I ucdlo edraedm ntwo she adn odl ayw we yaer swih esh 17 alsml os edh's us eaptrpd tfle torres kcab eth eiwlh go tell in utboa eahv ielf that. .
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You vloe i. Ouy ulfgaert i for so ma. Vgae enevr pu you. Uyo ihupsgn ketp. Ot eosm shti ohw ,rhobreli nad ti sroty uoy eosw elesfhr a you ear lnyo neouihs cesscsu vvdiresu. Od ass it ginog jyeno frmo ot rhee gngio and ewr'e ot kikc w'eer os rteavewh no cuhm ,out ew. ,lwayas and ianettp eb sehto as fo ew lwil we dnik, the no nvriifgog dan ayw rnueoecnt. .
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O,vel.
Own) ali lia by og we(.

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