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...

Adn idd you riiipotres !ti oyu got vheignrtye tbu d)cgnhae yuo elrgt,sgu hu(ghto atenwd some. .
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Mnataathn ni veli ew od. Hte adn hnwe tsol edsrma tsuj teh eauecsb opausisc sdtiun sgoeog,ru oyru oblcks hte ni veeal a you oen dan adn ecplou shpeo toguhth uoy aveh ahter yuo artnpteam dha ngduri a ahdecrs adgr rofm tamerk entrptaam oshclo ot - ilvde nsuny obker het dah oyu you to icty uyro ew lveae. Uboat uoy m'i oslmta sy,rro ubt rvyee tsill htikn do hmi day. N'vetha ot aagin mih slitl epnsok yuo. Onw esh' a ybab ihtw medrair. A in ordenw ouy kile uoy future lto aubto ti been veha ithw what dlwou htat. Ytrign taht 01 syare ouy npsed vepor ouy owhrty to him tsal wree het to. Ysaawl uoy ewer. Uyo ohw you nad e,rew omseone tubao btu eovl yuo rnowg he uthotgh ot eprov can eeabmc ttah be no jryeuno fo pordu tylru mih. So yuo upodr duolw eb os. Ear uyo udrop so. .
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Erwit a tlo oemr uyo. Yuo ai,smboiu(t a elnvo have wenr'te ubt adn rtepyo eaorp wl)s?aay nda rwiet we dtaestr a rokc. Utb uhlspe,bdi s'ti a not iltsl alog tye. Recrae maed luibhsp klei lnhiycle)cta rfo a so (ythe aenrgthim oraumgl, a tub atht tocnu nodudes 'lewl for a fo atht did n,coe yuo oyu idd mssinuobis iwter renve malu,gro as rowte yuo reifb. Ni ahtp dmeagiin a clsaio yuo're cteh ofr wongirk dmiea nacoypm on ,eistxde ni a envre tcgnonusil uyo trakimnge eassmiv. Ti oelv uyo. Artsm are yrienldibc and rpptevusoi royu rrwscokeo. Ouy aclep ,nmpiadce ormf nmtpteara uyor yruo odoumln nwo scbaeeu rysnacuat fo - het - yuro dsei uyo egt yb rwko htiw het lcal ot roetivaf. .
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Si noolmud raudon itlls. Itsh 12 iwll umrsem nda cnecar be eh ebat. Lod ctn'a an ertets on teh leevbie 'ehs nma epeopl. A lstli adn orf episahpt eht in pyppu gdo tnepatuori ahs he inegb eth hoobndeghroi ngeery. Alyerh raye in sedsap tsla crmah. Was and hes hes 18 yerad wsa. Lal het in tacs os dna ehs tohre agev uchm iuledvot liyafm evlo eth. Pmdroise to ees ydu'o ujts vmeo adn to solbkc reh and one niot you cayzr egounh ceon you ymasdeo rouy erh searhd akme she acbk rat,pnmtea nwo oyu ti omoeartsm eth hwit glno ync edliv rfom. Yrcza ist'. Tem eth ehr fo oerbgishn adn one ogd tafre halyer a,epssd i. . . Amedn yarehl. Yuo ttah saw ehs llufilf piomsre. .
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Dosl no eth in t!ankh)s cyt??i bkei the rmyooectlc a( we. Niaps tlsil no condo ni hte eewr' ionwgkr. Hhgi vlieebe ooslch no oyu to uhscr taht taht md,airer ogt efil,rby teh ew nca you guy in ahd fi gheu. Esls tuo eb eh tath dna buieavs dpluel out athn sulyfeor a yuo in yera fo to an neutrd lciaclhoo. Pcnikig telyhah orye'u sniutd nisce tno ta gdoo asstroenphili rvye. Eetrh thna our'ye namd own, erev but hatt nebe yaw gdngeea i!esmt phpriea e'vuyo lgsien. Mofr efnsidr guorp na owh renev upstoevpir a lla orve uvo'ey nilerdicbe yuo evha fo onnwk ywa ni era. .
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Oilstdea dna whorgt reay lats ni eimnsme nmloduo na,qentarui y'eovu dna lnigh,ae in oyu eealspicyl had tujs hiwle deep teh. It yeetdfiiln rsdfine mngiaza artmes tlsli oemr eltlti no - nad irsuova new a rtuhhog dgoin eakm emt emgsa ouy ymnoe uyo whic,tt sgaem heav apyl tmhe and vodei neev. Whta esls yuo dna oyu noyej afr do oerm fo tssesr. .
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A befero nglo rmeo 05; kbcute tsiem ew a ew 100 htna wroiggn ltis have tamols 05 dan eavh. Tgnruin 73 cgxeniti ads tlelti nda a swa. Indog oentsd' dan tub klei us eth lal ti trse era pdnse het lsfee like teh a tislmeneos it ifle oerv be adcrs uyo of so hcum ltisl vwatreeh fliamy rhtese' eft,l kolo in llwi ttille kiel it oyu a acn gib so rfo. Book ahtt shiifn. Ot go sianp. Ntnescinot het all tsiiv. Ouyev' deami eebn all eekp ouy ongid genib !yuo btoau ibudl iaotaelcpglyol od ryou atwn oalgn cmotyimnu wvraehte cna it a dna you lful ntuticahe on ecsebau loiasc igvinl ifle. .
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Aptdrpe ldo etlf 71 dna oaubt ew ahve raey ielhw su kabc she'd eilf edrdaem so she letl restor lmsal nowt in yaw go hse teh cdolu ihws atht i. .
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Uyo lveo i. Os for i falgetru am yuo. Evga nreve up yuo. Ouy shuigpn kpte. Ouy oyu to a elesfrh ssccues adn moes tish nuesoih hwo it vveidusr rstyo soew nlyo aer lobheri,r. So ot ssa nda do 'reew onyje hucm gnigo on rhee ti we rmfo tou, eerw' ot aerevwth giong ickk. Swa,aly ew no sa of etsoh dan ruotnecen wlli k,dni tteinap vgofniigr ew way eb and the. .
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Elo,v.
Ial yb w)no og lai ew(.

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