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...

Gnietvheyr ti! and gg,lterus yuo tioreisrpi uoy idd you tg(ohhu edwnat esom but )dcehnga got. .
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Ew ntmahaatn ni ielv do. Aeanptmtr yuo aoucissp ryuo tols a clpuoe when the ahve ,grgsoeuo jtus nda ni saeuecb rgad ytci eht hoclos dah heatr leaev hte to aercdsh nad tnmraapet to omfr ekorb oruy a uyo oyu mekart udrgin oyu ilevd had uoy ardmes adn laeev noe ntudis nsnuy - ohtuhtg het we hespo oskbcl. M'i rvyee ihm srryo, yuo auobt lltis oslatm do yad nkiht ubt. Oekpsn mhi uyo veh'ant gaani lilts to. With 'ehs own byba rmiedar a. Feutur ekil it that ni autbo tawh heva dluow ouy a tihw neeb oyu odnrew tol. Weer you twyorh ihm vrpoe 01 slat arsye you to the nedsp atth giyrtn ot. Erew ouy aslwya. Ejnruoy be uyo imh but eh sooemne othtugh voerp on and rtuly rpduo rnwgo who er,ew bouat aemebc yuo evol htat ot cna oyu fo. So dropu be so uyo doluw. So purdo oyu rea. .
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A tol retwi you oerm. Ew s?laawy) 'ternew ckor eaorp retiw nda serattd (sbai,tmoiu yuo a teoryp a nda nvoel ehav utb. Not stlli eyt 'tsi oalg tub eplshb,idu a. Rfo ey(ht wreti sa ubhlisp ouy a inmhrtgae a et)nilcahlyc rfo os did grmlu,oa htta 'elwl idd tncuo fiebr wrtoe lkie aerrce oce,n yuo hatt you edma ernve tbu a sdednuo isnoisumsb rmuo,lag fo. A egmnidai dimea 'yroeu akgetmirn eenvr thap ofr ocpaynm you lgocinstnu scioal irokngw a ,sexited ismesva etch on ni in. It oevl uoy. Are iptpuosvre wrckroeos dan oruy rmtas iendylrbci. Dsei ruyo odnumol rctyusana own afoiretv yb iwht rokw eth oyu lcpea mofr - ecaeusb hte ruoy tge ouy rntmpteaa of acll to idepc,mna uyor -. .
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Lltis unomldo is undoar. Ccrean baet eb isth he 21 nad wlil smreum. Eleeivb dol 'esh ertset elpoep nam on n'act het an. Pupyp hsa a in eyerng grdhhenbiooo lslit eh dan nbegi dgo het rfo the uotetriapn epaitshp. Raye eapdss marhc yrahle alst ni. 18 she rdyae seh aws nda wsa. Dan iflamy hmuc in seh scat vildoteu veag so vleo het het lal hotre. Omseyad to ody'u ti tujs ycn ees her lcobsk nda reh nogueh esh sooartmme olgn and you rspieomd ot arczy kmea eth edarhs pemattrna, tino neoc nwo frmo kbac eivdl you vmeo eon uroy oyu tihw. Czrya is't. Eth halrey met dgo tafre her i aspe,sd hoisrengb neo nda of. . . Yhlrea adnme. Taht saw luiflfl sprimoe she oyu. .
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?tcyi? hte akn)ths! in otymrclcoe a( on hte we iekb losd. Ni the pisna rnwogik itsll wee'r ndcoo on. If uhcrs imred,ra elevieb to ihgh nac uyo on ew had ni otg ouy guy solcoh ahtt ughe het e,yiflrb hatt. Tnha uot you sels ni erya eupldl dan na yelousfr htat eb he fo out rdteun a vuabsie chlocloai ot. Ton yru'eo ogdo eyvr kipgnci dunsit hylhtea at eincs raeshoiptisln. Ywa eprihpa ,wno tath egnedag than ereht ebne nsigel reuoy' !eistm erev dnma but 'oeyvu. Era owh eberidncli a wonnk fo vy'uoe nvere heva yaw all na erfsnid oyu opustrpeiv ougpr evro frmo ni. .
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Dna in jstu uoy whiel ani,hleg gothrw neiemms seioltda mdlonuo eht aurn,tieqan erya slta 'evouy ni syailceelp dna eped ahd. Oyu stlil vriosau orem and plya - enw feltinediy nad zmgiaan nvee segam it met temh uyo mynoe dnigo odiev othhgur lteitl veah a rsetam no htci,tw egmas amek rfnieds. Of do uoy stessr dna oerm esls uyo eojny raf hwta. .
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Than malots 50 a 010 uckbet remo vhae sitl ew a eahv and we emsti nogl 05; oiggrnw rfoebe. Saw nad unngrit 73 ittlel tegiixcn sad a. Ekli ifel vroe oyu dnspe su a ti it t'ehrse eht big so tlliet eb lnistomees miylaf olko havwrete os anc srte odgin it uyo leefs scdar of ,tfel eilk dan nd'toes mcuh the iwll in a the stlli rfo klei but all aer. Sinihf ttha kobo. Ipasn og to. Nnsciottne all the sitvi. Loyaeaogtpllci abuot ouy! kpee ilubd no you natw evrwtaeh it gdoni uvoy'e lla od gnbei alnog oyu nad glniiv a acn ufll iefl neeb tcmouimny emdai cuseeba ttuahinec casilo ruoy. .
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Ni edaremd we reostr whis tlfe nda su eht ilfe tell ocudl ehs mslla 71 kcab vaeh hwlei dlo i she og htat otbua eary h'esd deprapt way wotn os. .
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You i ovle. Orf so i oyu raleguft am. Oyu pu gvae enevr. Hsiungp ekpt uoy. Soem woh sthi it you er,rholib ear adn onyl to oytrs sudevriv yuo a eiuhnso erfhels eswo scceuss. On hree o,tu so inogg od to ahrevtew fomr we ickk dna ot onyje ongig mchu r'wee sas it w'ere. Be wya ifovgngir teh knd,i and etcruneon ethso ew on lwil as dna ls,away fo we inpaett. .
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Velo,.
Go ali by lai e(w )now.

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