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...

Gurgselt, it! uoy neawtd did otg tub uyo omes nda uhthg(o yuo e)dhnagc irtroepisi teyehnvgir. .
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Ni ew mhttaanna levi od. Cloeup pareatnmt dna a in eth hda ynsnu ealev bkoer rkaetm ouy hsoep henw hda idstnu yruo oyu icty eth sbklco ubseace uyo scadreh the to ugrgoo,es veha uyro slhoco soipucsa ormf tarteapmn to srmaed uyo - ouy rdga druing ostl a ew dna rthae veale eon uottghh utsj dan het velid. Yrros, tbu od 'im yad lmaost illst ntkih verye uyo him tobau. To itlsl ouy him kenspo htnve'a ginaa. Eh's a byab hitw rirmade nwo. Wtih ouy a thwa ni wroden uatbo eebn utrfue keil otl wulod it taht ouy vhea. Him atsl oyu ot 10 ewre tath ot wyhtro vorep ersya ntgiyr uoy nspde eth. Uyo rwee laaysw. Atoub no nca nrwog ovrpe oesoemn eb njeuryo atth and he oevl hwo acmeeb rewe, ouy of to mhi yutlr you ouy ghohutt tbu pourd. Purod so be so oduwl ouy. You porud so are. .
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A tol wetir mero uoy. A sawy?al) e'wetrn ew tub ockr oyu ertiw adn optyer and a apeor dsarett aevh onvel ,miuoatsbi(. Pehibdls,u ton tisll but loag 'sti tey a. Atth c,eno tath racree lelw' iekl ouy mdae fo ednduos oterw triwe did a sa inhmgrtea so roualg,m rof oyu ddi a a ssmsuibnio ,moalgur tbu chcynaleit)l hty(e iebrf for yuo reevn cuton upsilhb. Agndimei a ni evenr caymopn ee,txids gonwkir ofr a ni lingosctun aemid ouy on path ceth emisasv yueo'r etagirkmn ciloas. Uyo elov it. Piotsurvep yrou are iycebrnlid mtasr and soreowcrk. Yb tge teh uryatascn okwr uecseba own ouyr yuo ruyo of lcla eth uoodmln side - eplac you wiht ot oury nmtetpaar ndipma,ec - morf raoetvfi. .
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Nruoad ounlomd is lilts. Ncacer smurme eh sith ateb wlli eb adn 12. Na eopepl ebilvee a'nct eth ldo esh' estert mna no. Eh llsit shtieppa the adn het ni rhgbioondheo pypup rpoeaiutnt regeny god gibne a has ofr. Pdssae aeylhr marhc erya ni stla. Ehs 81 was was nda esh areyd. Much dan veol het she veag hte csat os ertoh all ymiafl ni ldieotuv. Uyo ckba noe yod'u with rmtaemoso ehs adn rmof vmoe her merdipos nda devli ot noce lnog juts onit dseahr bclkso ti cny ,mnparteta ese uyor erh yuo teh onw zryac eakm esamody hgnoeu to ouy. Czayr 'sit. Of erh ogd dna aeyhrl i oen earft sirbgnheo emt teh ,esaspd. . . Admne hleyar. Hes oyu llluiff tath asw spoirem. .
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No hte eht in ew t?i?yc sn!)hakt ibke (a losd ocrtycemlo. 'erew stlil het on ni aispn riognwk ocdno. Taht yuo fi you fyerbli, atht clohos eirmra,d ot can dha hgue on we beeeilv ogt srhuc hhig the ni ygu. Of bvsaiue an slroyefu a be lcloahoic ot eray rnteud ni tath dna uoy out updlle nhat lses he tou. Ogdo niudts nepiiohrtlass eyvr halhtye ta ngikpci not cseni oruey'. Aiepphr ,own daeggen way bene that m!tsie vere reou'y yveu'o nath danm btu eehtr ilgnes. All of rae rpuog ifrnsde oyeuv' owh veah rveo woknn awy rndlibecie mrof na you in iuepporvst vnree a. .
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Hlwei emeinms eht mduooln just vyeu'o had tasl aielcesylp tisoedal ouy in edep aar,tuniqne lh,eigna nad eayr trwohg dan ni. A no tmersa ditenfylei oyu kema airosuv vodie egasm it dna plya idong ,wttchi yneom - iltsl heva emro wen vnee zinagam efnrids mte rutohhg nad htme etiltl uoy emsag. You do dna roem tsssre sesl atwh yuo of njoye far. .
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A 001 ;50 05 smtalo mero we ew utebck tsmie hvae gnroigw lgno ehav slti dna foeebr tnah a. A sad 37 etixcign and titell swa unnitrg. Msonseitle lkoo it anc tlsli eth of eelfs sdnep all ni lwil dgnio rea but os f,elt fro ekli reov malfiy a hte ilek e'ntsdo su a so drsac uoy fiel eth eilk ti setr dan ttllei igb you it chum trhese' rvehteaw eb. Htat fshnii okob. Pnisa to og. Itivs lla tsctneionn the. Auhintect no uabeecs utoba all eevahrwt oyu ti epke dna nawt galno uy!o udlbi vlgnii eaimd uyro anc bnige unommytic lefi od lful oyu uyoe'v yepglcoolatlia aicosl nebe a ngdoi. .
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Evah hliew het ftle ntow su ldo awy 71 we ni i so rorset swih ptdpare abtuo hse adn abck laslm hes ulcdo reya ttah dh'es go etll mraeedd ilef. .
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I uoy ovle. Ma i gurtelaf for uyo so. Vnree oyu eavg up. Uoy isghnpu eptk. Oyu hits rae ot esom unheiso rlesfhe ti owh veuvrdsi ytrso a herlo,bir ccsssue nad weso yuo ynlo. To from gniog it on od ,out uhmc oeynj ot sas dna 'were kkic we so wthaeevr eher ogngi rwee'. We ew uenercotn eshto y,slwaa eth yaw dna rigifvgon tpetnai eb kdni, wlli of sa on dan. .
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V,oel.
Ali by ial (ew go on)w.

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