feeling...

Peaceful right?

feeling... sharp. dangerous. full of attitude. which, I guess, is just what a girl about to go to college ought to feel like. When you, future Anna, get this, it'll be ten years from now, and the passport that you got today will have expired. How was going to school in another country? Was it far enough away from your parents? What prompted past-you to write this (besides the fact that the trusty sketchbook/journal has gone missing) is the fact that, among all of the suitcases you were looking for in the attic today, you also found a hefty dose of family history. History from 1840. A picture of the family goat. Hand drawn sketches of the cottage. Letters back and forth between two feuding families. One family claims its daughter was starved to death whilst visiting the other. The other family is outraged because of a false arrest upon an unfounded accusation of THEIR daughter being a member of a house of prostitution. All insults and accusations in flowery, minute, faint 1840's penmanship, of course. I don't even know what the point of this email is. I just think it's weird that on the eve of your departure to distance yourself from your family, just when you're feeling incredibly independent, the attic delivers. Now, past-you wants to stay connected, be Bess's great great great great granddaughter, add her own tale to the many family stories. Past-you wants to stay in the attic forever, reading the family history. But I guess that's why college is good. So you can get the hell out of that attic and this house and make your own history. Go on.

Epilogue

3 days later

Ten years ago, I was a senior in high school aching to go to college as far away from home as possible. I wanted to see other countries and make...

Teisros ym onw. Dan moeh gtenevryhi ltef i ko sa tbu flhpeou evale to i nldapne eflt thta ot asw lenntmmauo — ited t,i vnee. Like my eniongp gswni moitehgns euftur up bofere was on em. .
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Wdno zacry nad ?thaw uyo ,nigaa retufu can the wokn tmmeissoe be evsil lesco oru pediw utb anc how sti’ waya. Delanre turgohh bfroee saw how sah 0202 ltteer tnteriw soesnl ewll tath, llew, oskwn i abtou het ihts thta xsi nstmoh dvlie tbu naoney goa tne treypt efart ryeas. Aiodsnged rtrboeh — cnrace adn was htiw i ym.
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Teher slotma tsth’a ngehou to thrgi ya,s. Rceexeie,pn hwti ylvulteean ot ewf eshdniif syera ned hhtoug teh kagtni mhi ehnt retfa hte gto nad ipyctal iwth vrene be elhp a even in ffo i i hmeco olgeelc. I ot kaem ym i ’di ehwil ot go eeddsattva ucrt,oyn ro mo,isrmee eb eclog,le tog be eeglolc if ni lesf or vnree enve legleco pyhpa gaintntde tdlo ttha ehornta e-y-erngaota lpcaity. Of eth to sslo my pcrodmea but erbrtho oosahrpum now i nwok taht ssol of semo eeoogellp-ch si hningot het.
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Ldo enrpso at kool efls i msestmoei 18 romf keil ayre rnediffet kabc elef a i leomclypte ym erh dan. Rehoesmew ureivsne, hre rleaallp of hnet iitegxns a tub eoidtsu i ni inamgie eitm. Eteltr dan tauob gte stih e’hss twganni ilfe her that to away eterh dan in iwnrtgi titngsi ldor,w trtas. Adn knaltig kawls rat, sseh’ wneragnid on now romo, nad reh kgimna dirfnes adn btoua rlofo the smciu eosokic anighlug and nda gehtrote orf e’theyr jsut dna ndow ethn dan tsiting ’osrerhbt nigog niot nad. Lgnkati to eon no hyet go on,w adn illw iwll eong ohw neo ay,rse ton dya uotba it kool ertonnrh eht eadmrs stig,hl fo oenn agntilk orem dolh hvea be taterms eth hotgreet ynol rye’het ot thna want eno dan gdnneisp ttah ikel to tne thta tgrhi temh batou dcneial yda whta ees feil liwl fo eth ni ot memrseio hoter etim grziaenli ot. Ym swa estb eh drienf.

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