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...

Gh(utoh uyo did !it oyu oeiptisrir gehrieynvt btu you got nad g,etusgrl antewd esmo )eagnchd. .
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Ni vile tanhatnma ew od. Ooggs,eru you uceseab you yitc tartepman uaosspci hte ot stju dan hsoep aleev eahv olbcks gotthuh ot ni nda nnyus ivled atehr we dgrnui evale oyu escdahr eht dan hte hda oyu ormf ardg royu duitsn lsot - okber a hte loosch a rdmsea ehnw natreptam eno yuo dha oryu poclue treamk. I'm but omstla abuot mhi slitl ouy do dya eyvre khtin yr,osr. 'tehvna him uyo still ot aniga eopksn. Medrira tihw abyb a she' won. Wodul vhae ahtw werndo you ithw a elik tobua eurutf eben you ttha ti lot in. Thyorw endsp 01 oyu uoy that ot ot satl het grtyni vorep arsey mih rewe. Slaawy oyu wree. Can olev no er,ew togthuh ttah eb fo nda ebcmea mhi ot ouy norgw eh uyernoj woh ubtao tlyru puord rvepo utb meoonse yuo uyo. Be you uowld udrpo so so. Uyo rae os uoprd. .
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Ermo uoy lot iewtr a. You but poaer pryeot a lyws?a)a nad okcr a ew arttdes nad tren'we ai,somitub( ahve wtrie onvle. Tye ,ihpsuebld 'ist not a oalg tub llsit. Ttha r,alugom so a iunsssobmi eenvr like rfieb for for eyh(t ubt did a etwir sa lhccleant)iy you ihpblsu l'ewl of adme mougl,ra you wtoer eacerr nhraitegm uyo utcon ddi hatt ceo,n a sdoudne. Yuoe'r coalis gscnitonlu on phta a mgaeindi tehc rof in uoy a gnrieakmt idame evner goirwnk ,seidxte ni imvssea cnpyoma. Vole uoy it. Orocerksw smart tirvsuppeo era dna ilcrdieynb rouy. Dpnac,iem - to now etg mfor teh twih wrok yuo eiftoavr atncrsyau hte ieds oyru etmpaanrt uyo by uroy ryuo - mudonol ubeasec lceap of llca. .
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Is isllt adonru lmuoodn. He hits neaccr be btea iwll and smuerm 12. Teetsr na hte mna on 'ehs 'tnac bveilee epleop old. Engbi god yegrne teh ni pupyp a and ofr eh illts ngeoriohobdh eht itphaspe nrauetpiot sah. Sdaspe hmrac ni eyra yealrh lats. Aeydr asw seh nda was she 18. Tvdoilue lvoe aveg laymfi ehs all eth cumh the oerth nda in so atsc. Hwti uoy cabk to aemk and erh yuo rsdeah and veldi aaetnmtp,r ot see mvoe neghou one hse soedyam het oyu omrf pormieds lgon rczya now econ it rhe tsju uod'y yuro msoemrota ncy nito kcbols. Rzyac i'st. Ssaed,p odg eon teh i her yalerh emt frate of adn rnehsoigb. . . Lahrye amedn. Eorpsim you ahtt lulflfi aws esh. .
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A( no we hsknt)a! lods eht ?tiyc? kebi tmecyoclro ni hte. Rwe'e the in dcono gnokwir lsitl pinas no. ,rderaim uoy can to cshur atht csolho taht dha no uoy ni yug high l,yreibf we if ehgu eeeiblv het got. Lchoilcoa tath evsbuia foeyruls a nad terund be sels raey ni of tuo an he eldlpu yuo otu hant to. Icens hhleaty odog rye'ou very at not iikngcp lasispiheotnr ditnsu. Uey'or etmis! reeth hatt snileg vree ywa agdgene amnd hnta prhpiea own, utb been 'euyvo. Lal riceenlbid fo uoy a ue'ovy rae eenrv viutesporp awy vroe in ofmr kwnon opugr edsrfni na vaeh how. .
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Eary stuj dieastlo dan ,naqntariue ni yvou'e inmesem eepd eth domounl helwi dna dha you lh,nigae rwtohg clpseayeil stla in. Vaeh apyl nimagza nda ovide enoym nwe ienlfyited adn measg eamsg aekm ouhtrhg ethm i,hctwt no met samrte yuo eorm yuo a it saurovi neve iltls tteill sneidfr - inodg. Oyu od nyjoe ermo uoy fo strsse less rfa and hatw. .
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05 uckteb dan ;50 eismt ehav we ew moer igwgonr avhe rbefoe 010 a thna lmsoat ognl a sitl. And aws neicixgt 37 ltitle ngutnir a sda. Lla uyo aehwrtve be su cdsar os ovre ouy gib of tbu os teh ilmyfa fe,lt a sflee ilfe it ucmh itletl it orf the lkoo wlil rea sndpe in et'onsd still a rehs'te dna teh can elki ti teieonsslm klei trse idong elik. That iihnsf kboo. Ot iaspn go. Iivts het einosntntc lal. Lful immtnoucy ilef casloi touba on voy'eu uoy csabeeu ouyr nlaog acn it a aeimd vgniil peek niebg all dna bnee od lbdui dngio yuo! teerawvh wtna nctuhtaei ouy egiotlacolpaly. .
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Ew avhe ielhw lod pedtpar dan swih orerts in tefl us dermaed kacb flei 17 awy teh yrea ahtt i ocldu seh go llet asllm ds'he aobut seh twno so. .
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I you oelv. Oyu i am rfo talreugf os. Pu nveer oyu aveg. You tkpe giupnsh. To it lsfhere a uineosh yuo ynlo lirrhboe, urdeivsv tsyor seow dna escucss smoe are ohw uyo ihst. Nda ofmr ew're wre'e on sas mhcu gnoig uto, eher igong so njeoy ot it to ew verhwate do ckik. Coturenen hsoet we sa etatpni of and ywa on we nki,d liwl eb dan rgvoignfi lyaws,a het. .
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Lo,ve.
Go wo)n ial by lia we(.

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