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...

Ouy trleg,gsu !ti did )ehgcdna tg(hohu ogt ehyvenigtr tub ipsieitrro ouy you emos dwtaen dan. .
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We nnahtamta do ni eivl. Ruoy wnhe you lpeouc dha - s,geogruo ahd dhsrace lost eth ruyo niudst a amtkre eht mtraaetnp ot dna eamsrd mrfo nnusy levae oshocl thtohug to a avhe urdnig in rdga eno eophs cpsoisua yuo arpantemt sklboc eevla dvlei hte ahert adn uoy uoy bsceaeu eht nad kbroe sjut we itcy uyo. Evyre uatbo ihm uyo atsmol day tub im' still do khtin osry,r. Hn'vaet him sllit ot aangi sepkon ouy. Mreardi own seh' ybba a hitw. It nbee waht liek hitw ubota ehva wdnero uoy ouy ni etuurf hatt lto olwdu a. Asery erpov alts thta dneps uoy weer him nrygti 10 uoy het whtryo to ot. Laayws you ewer. Ronwg mih yuo eb vrpeo ouy durop acmeeb but uoatb anc no tath of yuo ewe,r elov adn htothgu ulyrt nsoeeom he ot woh yeojnru. Os you be so pdour wodlu. Duorp oyu so are. .
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A more eiwtr you otl. Ere'wtn a a dan rettdsa ouy have ew w?asy)la oevnl nad utb okrc poetyr poaer mabuot(ii,s irtew. A yte ,ihlusbepd loga t'si iltls utb tno. Oyu missiobnus lbsuhip btu vrene oyu fo uncot rtewi soudnde deam h(yet for )hayitccnlle a ddi eeacrr irfbe so ec,no a o,ulgmra a ouy meahnritg klie for o,ruagml sa ellw' that did erwot hatt. ,tdsieex nrvee clioas no ptah nadeimig echt rof cpanyom uyo ignwork ue'oyr vasimse maedi ngutosilnc ni amgtinrke in a a. Ti ouy velo. Dna kcrreoows oyur rastm ciribedlny ptpueoirsv rea. The to ieds oyu ipmc,dnae ouy uyro mouldno fo - bauesce ruoy acepl call rkwo fomr get tarscanuy tihw your own - avftrioe tatenrpma yb eht. .
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Ronaud luomdno si still. Tish 21 illw ebat nad he muesmr eb recnca. He's eebelvi poelpe dol no nma na'tc hte an tseter. Tertaniopu rnyeeg yppup sllit ofr a ni tapshipe dgo hgrhbdeonooi dan he neigb het hsa het. Eayr tsla heylar sepasd crham ni. Dna eydar 81 ehs ehs asw was. Ehort in hte leov os lla cmhu liamfy ctsa nda uodtielv evag teh she. Ocen easdhr bscklo neo akbc whit teh reh ouy vedil to oyu ync dan ees ot seh oduy' own ycazr uhngoe tsju eamk logn adn odmasey it idpsrmoe frmo mtemorsao ,rpmanteta you oevm uyor otni ehr. Zyarc t'is. Fo tem efatr oen ibsenhrog sp,sdae i erh odg eth erhlya nda. . . Mdnae alyerh. Ttah saw liflulf hse srpeimo uoy. .
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Ymeocrtloc ?i?cyt eth ew in lods hte beki a( on ah!k)tns. Het on tslil in knriowg weer' oocdn psian. Tog ttha had eht oohscl uyo we rrd,meia ighh htat gueh yuo ryle,fbi fi uyg rschu on acn to vleebei in. Hatt tendur baisvue ni uot na atnh and colihlcao yuo eh sesl efsoryul a be tuo to elpdul yera of. Uoer'y yrev ont gdoo cenis sehnasiporilt at htehayl ipngkic istudn. Wya 'euyro hatn gnsiel ehert uevyo' !tmsie madn tub onw, pearhip erev eggeadn hatt eben. Ouy renev ni reov licrendebi a e'oyvu awy fo pirsupetvo opugr an woh lal ear okwnn ahve fiernds mfor. .
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Had oyu rtwhog eary dna olmondu ni adielsto ni uaraeqintn, ueoy'v tsal teh eg,hilan nda msenime iapycelels jtsu hlwei epde. No uoraivs video uogthrh ti wen mretas you maesg emt llsti zangami you yemno mgsae ndogi cw,hitt kema nda enldtiyife and emro - a neve etltil heva tehm idrensf paly. Mero ssle ouy fo uoy sterss od nda twah onyej rfa. .
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Matlos vhae veha a ;50 we stil a btuekc tnah adn nlog 010 we 50 ebeorf gwnogri etsim erom. Adn wsa 73 a ginrtun iltelt xgncitie asd. Ibg oyu be a het het noetds' anc lal ear wlil rehatwev eht felse illts ni a gdoni btu eikl feil like ookl dsepn dcasr tilelt tfle, adn mchu sret lsitsoeenm veor it ti uyo ialmyf os us it so for fo 'hester keil. Kboo taht sinfih. To anpis og. Otcisnetnn siivt all hte. Cueihttna nlgiiv you negbi 'veyou oyu ruyo nebe uoy! fiel fllu ewhravet luibd usebcae saiocl ekpe a ti od ceployaoitllga atbuo wnat nad lla ngido on nca aiemd omcmytuni glnoa. .
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Go ew etll ludoc meedrda esh dol tath us etfl heva srtero 17 i uoabt wsih in yaer eilf teh adn ntow h'esd hes asllm abck wehli ertdpap wya os. .
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Love you i. Am rfo letarugf os uyo i. Pu avge rnvee uoy. Sginpuh oyu tkpe. Rea tish inoeush owh moes veiusrvd trosy ot lony a it efheslr uoy eows nad uyo rehbir,ol ecscsus. Eehr do 'rewe onigg hmuc to ew er'we ,uto dna so kkci to erwtvhae oeyjn ssa on ti gonig orfm. Eht we hoste dan idn,k lw,yaas we as ecnteuonr fnogigirv on be tetniap ayw nda of lwil. .
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Vl,eo.
Og on)w ail ew( yb lia.

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