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...

Ubt eosm ddi ti! ogt detnaw ygenhveitr porsiierti hou(ght ouy ouy nad dcnegah) uoy g,tgsuerl. .
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Live hnmnaaatt ni do we. Unitsd jsut yuo nysnu usaipocs peoluc nad enhw laeve ouy rkamte darg nad stlo sramde teratnamp sbcokl ciyt dvlie a the eht ot - veale uyro to shpeo teh a bkero g,serouog dha we hda oclsho acuseeb arentampt arhet uoy tghtuho aevh rfmo and the yuo iundgr in neo yruo uoy cadersh. Khnit toaub ereyv im' mhi tub yrsor, lotams yad do tilsl oyu. Oyu to imh iaang illst tan'vhe pkneso. Dmerira with baby a h'es nwo. Lot thta ouy ilke a iwth oyu douwl hwta tuoab ni it ebne dweonr uruetf haev. Whotyr 10 the ouy erpov thta tsla pends ouy him asrye ot ygritn ot weer. Eerw swlaay yuo. Oyu fo embaec yuo ttah owh ot eh ryjneou nda osnmoee tghhuot pourd veol atbou nrogw eb evrpo uyltr on hmi anc tbu weer, uoy. So dolwu be os udrop yuo. Os uoy aer urpod. .
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A itwre uyo orem lto. Porea dteatsr reotpy ew dna ietwr adn velon you aveh orck a eenrw't but maob,tiusi( a sa?wa)ly. Gola sti' a isltl not sduplehb,i but yet. Os celyliatcnh) a ag,mourl ierbf tuocn elki irwet aihemrgnt you thta doensud ellw' you dmea ,eonc lphisbu wetro btu goaru,ml did a sa ofr rof ahtt nuissoimsb uoy caerre tehy( a did rneev fo. In a erven rouye' a imead thce amertknig ikwonrg fro pymncao adiniemg svasmie phat diexts,e yuo olasci no ni lgustonicn. Ti oyu elvo. Brnliceydi aer ryuo eosuvtpirp msrat nad cororwkes. Eip,dcnma ceabesu oumodln gte - ouy owkr of iwht uory omrf hte - uacsrnaty foiveatr uyo lcape ryuo sdie ot the yb taprmaetn nwo alcl ruyo. .
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Nardou si oodnuml itsll. Liwl neacrc dna uersmm tabe isth eh 12 be. Elopep teh nam ehs' tnac' odl an retest bvleeei on. Hte rnobihgedoho orf pyupp tuiarotepn ni odg asptphei lslti sah eenryg iebgn eth a and eh. Haeyrl apdess rcamh astl ni raye. Reday dan saw 18 swa esh esh. Imalyf nad esh hte eloidutv all agev rtohe os hte ni cmhu ovle asct. Reh mnaattp,er oen dielv adn rhe bcak niot ot oorsmmeta uoyr zrcya onw rpomides esh ymsdeoa aemk juts see it nolg sdrahe to rmfo yuo ouy ncy lsokcb nguhoe enoc yud'o whit hte eovm uoy nad. Yrzac 'sti. Nad eht reh tem eon fo efrat gdo hreyal i psa,des grbsehion. . . Maend hrealy. Hse uoy uifflll asw that meorspi. .
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Iyt??c no dlso tmcyelroco ni hte ew (a tkshan)! eth kibe. Hte ni ngworik on erw'e doocn isanp slitl. Tog uyg ebiy,lfr hda beeielv if the ni rmrd,iea to uheg no churs nca htat slcooh uyo we tath ihgh you. That uto ot ni lupeld he nda a you sesl eayr lorsyfue tou coiclhoal sbvuaie of athn nrtdeu na eb. Yu'oer rpetlnassihio tuinds yver at ensci ont gdoo nicpgik etaylhh. Been naeggde r'yoeu e!simt ywa tnha namd ,won tbu uevo'y taht irapehp seignl evre terhe. How uropg rfom awy vyoeu' a in uoy rea all an owknn of lbrecniide erenv roev veha suoitprevp rfnsdie. .
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Heliw tusj tne,nruaiqa cyleleapis year uoy dna in dah alts deep nda ouv'ey adtsoiel mismene teh in ngihae,l onlodum howgtr. Ttliel nidgo - aemk ewn on ghutorh mstera uoy ylpa uoy gnazmia egams hmet a dvoie etdiyefnli eenv tme riuoavs adn ,ttiwch vhae it and illts semag nirfsde mero eomyn. You fra yuo sesl athw esrsts of do neojy oemr dan. .
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Gworing erfebo hvea lits utcebk 05 ;50 meor ahnt 100 a isetm dan aehv tlamso we a olng ew. Tiletl tngeicix 73 a tnurnig wsa das dna. Sleef dan llwi it us gbi you ear so dsacr ilyfam ni r'sthee tub all oevr umhc hvaetewr gidon orf like eltitl the s'eodtn a fo eht cna the teesilsomn be a like sret sltil it elik so you ookl it feli ,lfte nedps. Fshini kboo htat. To og aisnp. Lla ioctsnnetn hte sitiv. Od olagn tawn oyu tuhicatne glivni veuy'o ooeiplyllcatag lduib it being eben eueabsc tuaob lal yotmnucmi eamdi y!ou on efli iodgn rvaheewt uoy sailco ufll yuro kpee nac nad a. .
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The veha lief hse he'sd hiws i raye ni tbauo ldo ttah lsmal wotn 71 dan ew os etll bkca wehli ptrapde tefl us hse sreotr uldco ddeemar og ayw. .
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Oyu elov i. I fguetlar uoy ma so for. Ouy vnere up geva. Snphgiu ouy ktep. Syotr nda lnyo niohesu hist to reflehs you oyu ccussse are who a rdsivuve b,rilehro omse ti owse. 'eerw on umch it u,to inggo hree gigon ot fomr do we cikk ass ehtrvwea ot nad os ree'w neoyj. Dan eatiptn eutnrneoc het and we on k,din vigrongfi be awy of ew sa etohs wlay,sa llwi. .
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Le,vo.
Yb (we wn)o og ila lia.

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