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 ouy ghytnieerv gacnde)h uyo sirtripeio oh(uthg but oesm uoy and lregguts, edtawn idd ti!. .
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Ilev od ni ew aaamtntnh. Aedchsr to rdga clupoe yruo hte a etamkr adn puosiasc shoclo stol ew tamrepnta ivdle ot hda uringd and uoy yuo ouy htogthu maesdr eth veael aevh suynn yuo alvee ,oeguogrs oepsh hwne ahd uyro jtsu nda klscbo tusnid - ni yuo neo a ekbro mofr teh ciyt hte rnteapmta aeceusb aetrh. Tub you yda osy,rr mtsloa khtni do eevry im' obtau siltl ihm. Ltsil yuo aniag to hmi a'enhtv sonekp. Hse' nwo reradim a hitw ybab. Trfueu udolw oatub ttah it yuo a deorwn in nbee tol keli uyo hwta ihtw ehav. Irytng yuo ot weer 10 the ysrae oeprv tlas htat nespd ot uyo mhi orhtyw. Uoy eewr asyawl. Roevp of butoa odpur eeamcb that loev rluyt no ouy uoy btu htughto ot nad osoeemn ngowr be ohw anc him you ,rewe nojreyu he. Os dlwuo so opdur uyo eb. Oyu os rea uropd. .
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Lot rweti uoy a roem. And a oyu ubt dna oenlv ahve ewtren' soii(aumtb, write rpyteo a sdeattr rock we alay?sw) orepa. A hebiu,lpds ont gola is't tub sitll tye. Ua,orgml 'lewl onc,e evrne did amed you imissousbn uodensd orf etinhgmar tub eearrc tenacc)llihy ,glromua fo htat fireb ouy yhe(t retow orf ountc atth hslpuib did a ekil a rtewi os sa oyu a. ,ditsxee ituolsnncg eidangim you mitkegrna a y'oeur sesiamv nveer no phta comanyp in a coiasl hcet madie gonwrki ni fro. Lveo it yuo. Beyrilncid yrou trviuoppes rae nad rwesokroc trsma. Eth you - you nrmattaep ithw donlmou etg cdpia,nem owkr romf rvteofia by ised arnaystcu uyor fo - oyru nwo yruo eseacub ot clal eht cealp. .
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Is onmludo illts ruonad. He 12 htis ermmus ebta aecrcn llwi and eb. Nma on dol a'ctn hes' vbeleei lepeop na teh tserte. Noreooihhdgb adn rof het ainturotpe ash gryene lsitl ypupp in eaihpspt teh a iebng he gdo. In desaps hyealr yare rhcma alst. Aws reyda 81 hse esh wsa and. Stca gave hte hte esh hoter mlfiay elov so ni lla dna ioelvudt muhc. Ehs roamesmot uoy skclob fmro cabk emka ody'u razyc teh ti npmtar,aet yruo oen ot asredh to vmoe ese otin you dna nda ehr edvil edymoas nceo oyu gnlo hgueon now jtus epdimosr rhe wiht cyn. Cazry tis'. Odg of oen eht eoirhnbgs nda rfeta etm erh ssdpae, i relyha. . . Lyrahe edanm. Hes you aws fllufli preisom htta. .
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?cyi?t we eibk eht k)hnas!t het ycecotomrl in no (a dsol. Eth eerw' igwnrko lltsi iasnp dcnoo no in. Had eghu bievlee olsohc if hhig ew the oyu ogt acn htta yug rim,dear oyu ni e,fybilr ruchs that to on. Pllude uoy ni hillccaoo thta uot he efyurslo yera nhat viseaub uot fo and lses to reudtn na eb a. Oodg rvye theylah ure'yo eisnc sutdin nto at hsoiipnasrtel pgcinki. Yvoeu' terhe slgnie esmi!t ebne denegag ayw ueoy'r nhta mnad ttha but onw, eerv ipparhe. Fsdneir ouprg neiidclerb of owh oyu lla era an vahe rvoe ywa wknon uv'yoe srpeiutovp fmor ervne a ni. .
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And wogthr l,inghea pdee dha nooumdl ilhwe rqnnae,taui tusj raey last hte adn uyo enmemsi ouey'v itoaldes piyselcael ni ni. Amek efridsn nad esagm msaert it eavh wen raoisuv tourhhg little ogdni nda feeniyldti evne no twhi,tc emht pyal yuo - lltsi mte omer uoy emyno dievo a segam ziaagmn. Od sessrt dna wtha fo rfa lses uoy eynjo yuo eorm. .
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A erfeob eorm aevh aehv irgngwo 05; gnol 05 etims bteukc a anht 100 tlis dan oatmls ew ew. Eltlti asd 37 tgincxei a saw nad uintngr. Ti npsde humc be in hwvtaere so mlyiaf odse'tn anc loko rfo elfi of mieltosnes ileltt kiel it orev ear a big hte leik ti uyo acrds letf, etrs btu lwil nad hte so oyu all us tersh'e a igond eht feels ielk lilst. Iinfsh htta koob. Napis og to. Lla notinsncet tsvii hte. Teveharw acn lla lagon llfu uatnitehc bnee dieam you! beign atwn indgo ti no a cnyoimtmu ouy od ryou saeeubc adn 'vyueo paoceigatlllyo giivnl calios tuoba efli uyo peek lbdui. .
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Ew abck i 17 adn su leif hewli ahev oetrsr ntow ni lalsm teh tobau ltel rddmaee tath og adetppr esh esh reay so edsh' uolcd ywa sihw tfle ldo. .
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I ovel ouy. Yuo i rfo lauftger so ma. Nerev vgea uoy pu. Uspihgn ouy tepk. Escucss ti yuo a oyln bi,ohlrre to oyu rea siuhnoe tryos mseo ihst ehrfesl woes idvevurs dan hwo. Ot ggion heer we're ass umhc w'ree od ,out atheevwr ot nogig rfom os noyje ikkc nad we it on. Ew we fviigrnog itntepa nda liwl be nda ywa of ywa,sla nd,ik eoths as on ernueoctn eth. .
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Vloe,.
No)w yb (ew ial og lai.

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