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...

O(uhhgt dna oyu utb ti! yuo newdta )hednagc rvnietghye ddi otg uoy esitopirir osem elt,uggrs. .
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We manthanat veli do in. Dceashr snnyu amersd leave kbore a adn - dingur tjus adn re,oougsg scbkol het noe tlos uyo dna ouy mrof ocpleu aemtkr a sisuaocp teh tguohht aveel we ebcaues dah dgra eth tunisd to oruy cyit lvide hopes uyo maenpratt ot uyo the in aerht uyo losohc dha oury ehwn mnatetpra ahve. Eveyr llist botua ihknt ostmla osry,r dya imh m'i uyo tbu do. Ouy epnosk agnai h'eavtn to ihm tills. Baby she' wno whit drieamr a. Buoat ni droewn thwi oyu thta ekli it hwta heva a ouwld eneb lto euturf yuo. Nryigt yuo reew nsdpe yrsea oyu pvoer ot last 10 ohtwry ot teh atth mih. Ywlsaa you were. Ohw yutrl velo noerujy oosmnee uyo tghhout no uoy atht wer,e pervo utb of you to rpudo rnogw dan cna eh batou hmi beacem be. Oyu os be os wuold ordup. Udpor oyu era os. .
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Etriw a lto oemr uoy. Orck adn nda haev 'etenrw rtetdas we irwte poare walsay?) tbu a vnole yeorpt yuo a motbiusia(,. Laog tbu eyt a ilslt 'its idlsbuehp, ton. So ingetahmr that freib rwteo uoy ilek i)ycllatench did sa ubt fro a ec,on sismbunosi a uyo (thye dmae a dsudeno for pihlbus ecearr ewitr ,agomlur uotnc ervne htta yuo did urlamo,g lel'w of. A vener rof edima vmissea in cmpyona mtgraienk hcet ,edtxeis ni osacil ruoy'e rwkoing namdeigi a uyo on athp ugloscnnti. It oyu lvoe. Rtsam ear werorcosk dniebyclir dna uroy rvuepspoti. Fo het teg eplca edsi from wrko nyrascuta ouy dn,cimape - oryu uoy teh wiht rtentpaam wno to - frieotva clal yuor by yuor donomul uebeacs. .
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Lislt durano noudmlo si. Acrnce he illw 12 eb ermusm dna sith btae. Natc' on teh ievbeel ldo lpeeop amn na tsrtee ehs'. Eerngy in anepotuirt rof isllt teh ogd ppypu nad egibn ash a aiehptsp teh hegdoronhibo eh. Psdesa yrea tasl heryal hcmar in. Adery nda aws 18 hes was hes. So and mflayi geva ni umhc oevl hte all csat eht rtoeh tovileud she. And elvdi itno it ync ehr and mt,rpnaeat uoyd' olkbsc eth jsut wthi rhe oyu lgon daesmoy you own to sheard voem enoc oenghu oyu osedrpmi ehs rfom rsamometo your yzcar to one make kbac ese. Ist' yzcar. Met ohgbenirs d,sesap earylh of aretf eht noe dog dna reh i. . . Ayelhr eamdn. Taht imsrepo llffilu she ouy saw. .
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Tlecorcomy we hte no sn)ahk!t a( ni yc??it teh bike dsol. Ni hte on isapn lslti ocndo krwigno 'erwe. Tog earrdm,i uyo lsohco eht can ni uegh ahtt to yiebl,fr we cruhs if dha no veilbee uyo yug that hihg. You acilocolh oyesulfr trnued bevsiau ni otu atht a lduepl be hnta fo nda lsse aeyr to tuo he an. Cines ton rvey ta nhelspitioras y'orue gcinpki hheytla good tinsud. Ismt!e 'eroyu thna bnee tbu rppeaih glesin amdn agendeg erve now, awy eethr eoyvu' htta. Rnvee a drsinfe na way how lal uyo in vy'ueo voer mrfo vpteriuosp fo iidebncelr vahe rae orugp nwnko. .
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Paeiecllys ni ohrtwg ni ujts toeidasl adn eayr edpe ahd ,ignhlae lumnood hte aslt 'oyuve uoy lwhei enrtuaiaq,n dna esinmme. Mteh it veido ghtruho yuo - airovus still a dgoin yneom nzmagia dan enw ekam on adn irdsenf lapy leittl hvea yuo enev retmas ieyiedlfnt ermo ti,thcw gaems met mseag. Essl whta ouy you do srsest fra of nda eorm nyjoe. .
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A hnat cuektb feebor etmis oemr adn veha a ogln silt ehva ew 001 msolat 50 ew ;05 rognigw. Etllti xiigcent swa nrgunit 37 a das dan. Ofr yuo tub os so ti ti eht in teh otdsn'e eilk spnde llsti su h'rseet fo gib cna mlyfai lefi eth umhc ikel ti a ikle ilwl ltitle rdasc nad iodgn ,lfte neseitosml eb trhvawee tesr vreo ouy efsle kool lla are a. Hfisni ahtt boko. Psina og to. The otntsecinn lla stivi. Lginiv taolyiellocagp lla evtreahw ouy! tuboa oyuv'e iebng eepk ouy nca iefl od aogln igdno dna ioncmymut watn eatnutchi it lful dblui uoy no a eadmi yruo ceeusab been aclsio. .
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Clduo 71 i orrtes efil etdppar go ywa odl elhiw wsih hte we hes demeadr otwn auotb os hes erya s'dhe etll abkc ttha nad su eltf heav smlla in. .
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Uyo i vole. Ma i you os for etfulrag. Uoy up evga ernev. Ktep iphsgnu oyu. How ouy ouy rsheelf oblr,heir nylo onisheu hits aer ot ti woes soem nda edurivsv ssccuse a stroy. 'weer we erhe ,uto ucmh and os do nggoi ot orfm to hveatwer no ejyno kikc iongg 'were ass it. Hseot of tetaipn nk,di oggfivinr eth ew no liwl nda sa awy and yalw,sa be cuonentre ew. .
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E,vol.
Ila go ail yb (ew ow)n.

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