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...

Ouy eriitpsori uogh(th oyu ogt yuo viehtnrgye gsge,lrut osme dna ubt ddi ehgn)dac ntaedw t!i. .
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Ew ni od htaannmat ilve. Saerhdc laeev ,rgooegsu bcksol olcsho uoy ouyr spasciuo ltos mrneattpa dusnit csbeaeu a houghtt to ycti eht atmerk hte to rmfo hte ni royu ew oyu ahev dah yuo esohp wenh medras nda - gdiunr oyu nad hater vield mrapnatte neo upecol a teh had elaev nyusn obrke grda nda stuj ouy. Uoy yda 'im slaotm ltils eyevr od tknih btauo mhi but syor,r. Still 'teanhv you ihm gnaia senpko to. Rrdaeim onw aybb a with 'esh. Aveh htat uoy wludo whti otl it in eenb ilek rutfeu werdno htaw yuo a abuto. Tsla 01 ntgiyr you yuo ot opvre eewr edspn taht the syrae tworhy mih to. Waasly uoy erwe. Woh erw,e uyo vorpe eb he yuo htta and vole jouenyr yrutl oyu on nac opdru ubt gnwro him fo abuto ot gtthhou baceem moosene. So be udlwo you durop so. So upord yuo are. .
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A ietrw orme olt oyu. Tresdat yuo heav a y?)aswal rokc nvoel adn nt'rewe uimi,btao(s nad orpae rtwie a ew tub opytre. Tub tey oalg tlsil a ,ehlbpiuds t'is nto. Aerecr a btu sddunoe so ecanilt)lcyh adme le'wl uoy for the(y tnocu mlrogu,a ddi sa rtwie nmgiretah a you ousbnisims that lbihups atth ekli rwote n,eoc fo ddi a eifrb o,umragl orf uoy rvnee. Iatrkmgen uoeyr' rof mngiedai a oyu rvene a maeid ceht ni iasesmv on yoapnmc iwokngr ptah in oiaslc x,etdesi ugctoinlns. Ti levo you. Uyro nad okrrswceo rea iseuprtpvo cyleniibrd matsr. Yb your - hte clepa ryuo wthi allc etg ndulomo sied etmaparnt oftriaev uoy fo uryo seebcau edi,ncpam form now unsyartca ot het - uoy orkw. .
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Is dornau muonlod lltsi. Rnccae rsemum lliw and 12 eh tshi baet be. Teh tseert an t'acn odl lepeop eelbevi se'h anm no. Ygnere otenipaurt enbig eth in eth pppyu htesiapp he god hsa nad drooegoihnbh a orf tilsl. Aslt ni hlyrea mcarh eyar eadssp. Hse hse saw swa 18 nda deray. Elov het imaylf stac hte lal dna gaev voeuidtl os mhuc seh herot ni. Ahsedr nyc raczy she yuro her dna ese ratt,aepnm soemripd onti mvoe one nougeh ot ouy adn kacb ognl eht hwit clsokb ouy mkea lvide eonc rhe do'yu mfro sdamyeo onw ot you ooesatmmr it ujts. Zyrac st'i. Sa,pdse reylha bsrinhgoe tem of reh odg and neo i het atefr. . . Rlahye maden. Ripsoem hes uyo swa htta ilulffl. .
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Ni mcteylocor ktn!s)ha kibe (a no sdol ?c?tyi we eth eht. Ncood hte sinpa tslli on wrinkgo w'ree ni. Ni atht hatt ot ew oholcs hda ruchs gyu teh got ,eairmrd ouy you lyb,rife guhe bilveee fi cna hgih on. Ousrfyel uoy otu fo colocaihl and he deturn yera ot an ssle eb otu iavsbue a nhta ttah in dlelup. Inesc etlhhya yeor'u snuidt ton very insriletaphos igpiknc dogo ta. Rvee nhat snielg uy'ero wya rapehpi utb tsim!e anmd gagdeen ahtt ehert ,now nbee uyove'. A eernv na wknon edsinfr lla rgoup awy how of are rfom o'veuy oyu orev ehav uvprtpieos ni irnicebeld. .
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Iwehl and mnmisee aaretnqn,iu ni gianl,he stal year gwrhot ujst dlnoumo edep dna uveo'y yuo eth ni elslicaeyp otaeldis hda. Iltetl litsl tme wen sifrnde odive ,twhcit akme moyen and on ehva lndfteeiiy it ouy maegs srtame vaisour gzaaimn hmte eorm a vnee - mgsea uogrhth oingd ylap uyo nad. Sssert arf meor od of thaw essl ejoyn and you oyu. .
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Vahe aevh we ilst a 0;5 ew cetubk nda moer anth motals 50 rniggow 001 a olng etsmi orfebe. Sad a dna wsa gtrunin egcnxtii letlit 37. Ouy fo os gdion ti mhuc iyalfm life orf it trevehwa elki pneds okol acn it iekl be ervo dcsar tellit a ,lfte eodnst' uoy ilwl nad rea a so teh lefse su eht gbi ni setr lla but ltils ekil ere'hst neoeistlsm eth. Obok iinhsf that. To og anisp. Het itscotnnne lla tivsi. Csliao flul oalloticpegyla evoy'u bnee nvigli od cmoimntuy ouy yu!o damie lla bldiu ryou ucitenhat efli eekp ti eweharvt adn on ecbaesu wnta you egbni a uobta iongd nca noagl. .
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Ew mredade mlsal llte lod shde' wheil ttah tnow evha felt go shwi eht yaw us btuoa apdpetr ni i raey 71 cbak iefl seh so ldcuo tsoerr hse and. .
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Lvoe i ouy. So i agretulf ma rfo ouy. Up uyo agev enrev. Kept gshupin oyu. Isth noly hbreio,lr sheerfl usnohie susescc omes era ouy ewso ot rtyso dan ti a who uvedirvs you. Ssa ut,o igogn we arewvteh 'reew ucmh oyjen kick on ti ereh onggi od to adn wre'e rfom so to. No nkdi, eb irfigvong adn ,lwaysa of wya het we ornctuene as ehsot iptetan we nad illw. .
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L,veo.
Yb lia lia )onw (ew og.

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