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...

Tgo btu tsuglerg, tehygveinr dnwate you tohh(gu ti! chedang) ouy moes uyo dan iioepsritr did. .
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In od thnaamnta vile ew. Eathr eleav dvlei utidns rkeob sipaosuc in solt oyu coohsl dermas levea veah ugnird to tohtghu opesh uoy the tpamtnare ahd ulocep uyo a icty rfmo ew ot - ahd slcbko uoy yuor neo nda euescab syunn a dna sjut hewn dna grad krtema uoy ruoy the arptatemn hrasced hte eth o,oggruse. R,sryo do utb iltls you tmoals ihm day i'm tnkih vyere tuabo. Ouy vahte'n to nkpeos mih aigan illst. Iemrrda byab s'he a won with. It a drwnoe uaobt thaw iekl have been ouy tihw tuuref you in htat dwoul olt. Twyohr pdsen uyo ot him last resya wree ot 01 ygnrti hatt uyo teh vrope. Ewer awalys uoy. Ouy hwo otbua no taht loev ovrep nca ongrw urtly oyjenur nda ot oyu pduro fo be yuo ubt him ree,w htuogth he meebac onoseme. Os be dwlou uoy oprdu so. Are prdou os yuo. .
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Rietw eorm a otl uoy. Uoy trwei and ew orck boia,t(muis 'tenrwe veah a asetrdt ubt leonv ayl)?was nad a perao etopyr. Euplb,sdhi yte a utb otn lltsi lgao 'sti. Orf a ntraghmei utb nvere ddi ,glamour eecrra cnoe, emda for atht of as ddi rlo,agmu a oenudsd you lwl'e omuisssnib thye( os tuonc atht oyu uyo ylcca)hinlet eotwr iertw klie feirb a uplhsib. Emiad a mcnaopy rgionwk ofr a esvaism eo'yur imnegida on paht uyo tehc vrnee icnlsngotu xsit,eed ni amtirgkne asiocl in. Yuo ti eolv. Euoisrpptv rstma oorewscrk yrou ear dna ydiebrclni. - ot ysuracnta by krow eplca ebseuac uoy yuo ryuo fo lalc ihtw londoum rmof oruy dsie eht oyur - nwo the penia,cdm etnaatrpm teg fetvrioa. .
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Ouadnr si isltl udlomno. Cncera and eb he urmmes btae 12 htsi ilwl. Eliebev plpeeo hte ldo on seh' nam 'actn esttre na. Negeyr dna puaioerntt ogd eth orf seipatph eh uyppp ni siltl eodiohgnobrh a ngibe sah the. Alyrhe in aespds salt aeyr mhacr. Ayder seh 18 was hes asw dna. Hotre ni lla egva eth nda hmuc iflmya tdoveuli ehs scta os evlo hte. Uyor aormeomts uengho delvi move ees hte iepdosmr meysoda aekm neco bkca romf her you nwo it jstu you ot lnog ouy esh r,aettnpma aredsh rzyac rhe sbclko wthi eno cyn and and to yud'o into. Tis' zryca. Reh met lharye het greihsbon tarfe of d,ssaep noe i god adn. . . Aedmn arehyl. Filullf aws uoy ttha smreipo ehs. .
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Ikbe ni no ew hte omccleryot htks!na) yi?tc? olsd eth (a. Itsll wonkgir r'ewe no pians het ocond in. Thta you if lsohco e,miarrd hgih eth in uyo uyg geuh dah tog atht can no ot we eryfbl,i bevieel shurc. Hant in lsse hatt yuo yuoefsrl tuo an he to aery rtnedu eb a cahloiocl tou suebvai nad ellpud fo. Odgo veyr tyahelh uo'yer tno ta cines insudt kpgicni ostliripsneha. Ednageg eben eerv heert eimt!s o,wn tath nlgsei ntah pheapri but danm you're awy yevou'. Eavh orgup cniridelbe in fo na prvsiouept lla wya a nveer vreo yuo owh rfom rdifsen yovu'e wnonk aer. .
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Apeileclys lhwie ltsa het ni stju ehalgi,n mdoluno aiqetr,uann nda pede in menmeis v'eyuo dna hda tdilseoa thgowr uoy yrea. Teelynidif adn msreat eevn a sgmea ypal nigod tisll ouy dan meht uyo htuorhg esnrfid kmae - heva sameg enw h,ictwt neymo no gamniza ti iorvsau more ovdie tem tleitl. Elss fra do fo uyo sretss ejony ermo and tahw you. .
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A eomr ltis 05; bteukc have lngo amslto heav a 05 eforbe dna gnwiogr hnta mteis ew ew 010. Unrting a 73 saw das igtcnxei etllit dan. Cmuh su leittl it oestesmiln str'ehe big in so of felse het mayfli aer gidon lkei t'sneod a het telf, utb orev ikle yuo lal uoy hte dspne nad iltls rtse eb crdas erhewtav ofr olko anc leki flei so lilw it a ti. Ifhisn tath okbo. Go spani ot. Hte sitiv all innotscten. Eyvo'u lcylapgioaotel glvnii uyo o!uy lnoag oailsc dblui a no nda flul natw gdion imaed aotbu ekep od lla uryo vaerhtwe it bgein ehctaunti nebe lefi toinumcym uoy sbaecue nac. .
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Ulodc ilef ftel onwt ckab so dan rtosre i aery su whsi she we og ayw obuat 17 letl dlo tath 'ehsd mslal ni patdpre hes eihwl emedrad avhe het. .
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I uyo levo. I yuo os ofr tglfaure am. Eagv uyo up vrnee. Ktep ouy phnsigu. Esom yuo hrfsele rae cseucss adn ot who a osew uyo sheuoin vuvesrid o,riebrlh ti sthi sotyr lnoy. Ew ereh ssa omrf gnogi ti 'eerw re'ew on os do evtearhw uto, oingg ot to kikc mchu dan ynoej. As lwli we ew yaw unrteceon of aw,ylsa hstoe tpeaitn eb dan iroinfvgg nad ,ndik teh on. .
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L,veo.
Now) ila yb ail ew( og.

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