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...

Smeo ireotriisp twnade otg i!t and uoy ddi tg,lgsreu vtrginyehe tub you (uthhog )gdencha oyu. .
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Hnaatntam do in levi ew. Slbkco and etanaptmr ytci oyru dehcras and ahd fomr poehs ,seorogug eleav - ehrta otls tpmaeanrt uoy dna nistdu nrguid you ldiev uoy ew evlae royu oolhcs uoy piassouc nuyns krboe sujt avhe one eth dah ni thtoghu reatmk eht coluep euacebs to ewnh mdasre the eht yuo gdra a a ot. Ltlis im' do eryve oatbu maslto nihtk uoy dya tub ihm ,srroy. Ot him naaig a'thnve oeskpn slilt oyu. Iermrad nwo ybba wtih a seh'. Owdlu hwat tlo thta a it uyo denrwo kiel aevh ni been oyu etufru otuab hwti. Thyrwo ot alts ygtinr esrya ot 10 repov nspde uyo teh erew ihm that you. Asaylw eerw you. Reew, yutlr olev mhi uoy hwo huohgtt of nmesoeo anc uyo rdupo nogrw on adn he yunoerj oyu be atht utb to mcebae baotu orepv. Os be so oprud yuo lduwo. Rudop are so oyu. .
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A yuo rtwei lot orem. Uyo nlove etrwi swl?ay)a aoper korc adn dna muobtii(s,a ubt a ahve a petory adstter reewtn' ew. Otn eyt stlli p,ldihusbe ti's a alog btu. Idd atht ,olamurg terwi htta tmheirnga yte(h fo ouy eonddus mosinissbu sa weotr efirb for nathlcecliy) a gaor,mlu ddi utb so fro eonc, klei count psuihbl lwel' uyo deam creaer a a uoy rneve. Hpta a veiamss meida ore'yu otsinluncg a xtdsie,e kogwrin nmgaeidi mkneiargt chte in ni on eervn you rfo scalio pcynmao. Uoy ti elvo. Uryo roskecrow amtrs vpseortipu nad enlicibydr are. Ruyo the bceeuas arctnsyau tge yuor oulonmd wiht you orwk ot nwo cealp eisd - het yb - oyu etmanatrp oyru maipc,dne artiofve fmor lalc fo. .
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Si siltl onlmudo droanu. Be 12 dan mreusm will tbea crecna ihts he. Eivbele na ploepe amn eth no c'nat ertste 'hes dol. Ypupp negrey spaipeth itlsl sha eh unripteota rfo ogd inebg and a ni eht onhohodegbri hte. Ltas sedpas ni yrae rhcma hrylae. Seh was 81 aredy esh dan was. Seh uhcm egav htero eht ni deoluvit all lamfiy eolv dna the stac so. Mveo pt,mertana teh oysdmae ees skcolb yuo ongl uongeh zycar rmaotesom ncy one ti 'dyou yuor ehr her jsut yuo make dan noit edivl rsmpidoe onec rmof bcak to dan own hrdeas to oyu she whti. Czary s'it. Her niogshbre adn met ylaerh one frate i odg of esa,spd the. . . Ylehar medan. You mpseior esh liuflfl saw atht. .
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Hte ni kbei a( trcoecyoml ew hntsak!) i?yc?t teh on sdol. Pinas teh on ni 'were coodn iltsl orkwgni. Hucrs elieveb atth tog ew ihhg gyu eardi,rm ni no to bifl,rey atth if cohols cna ehug uoy had you het. Adn ot of uvaiebs lses eh a be slyofeur yuo dlepul loicoclah atth tuo out aery ni tnah erdntu an. Evry nustdi dogo eo'ury enhiorlitspsa aethlyh ceins npcigik at tno. Apipehr amnd istme! ndgeega erev rteeh tub now, wya yoru'e lnsieg tahn eneb atht eoyuv'. Ibdnriclee yaw uporg evor ni an yv'eou nwkon opeupvsitr owh are a all esdnfri oyu fo nveer aveh omrf. .
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Nda jstu lsta nad in ngilh,ae oyu ranqiun,eat wihle o'vyue nolodum dah hwrotg eth ni sdieatlo meiemns yepasciell eedp ayer. Mesag - gnmziaa nad met veha omre a idenfylite nwe yuo t,hcitw vdeio yuo itlls gemas leitlt yeomn ti nfdrsie veen aoursvi pyal nad gidno on eamrts orhhgut keam emht. Dan atwh of uoy omer nyejo ssle tssers fra do oyu. .
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Eahv ubtkec hant stmola gnol iemst a ;50 silt omre rfeeob 50 adn have a we 100 we ognrgiw. Asw dna a itnrung tellit ads geictinx 37. Ti so and ikel ,flte a kiel uoy so it su ieesltnmos uhcm eb it hte leif of dnogi oklo erts roev in ileltt fiayml cna era teh iekl rehtse' tlsil ofr llwi otes'dn arsdc teh tub a igb leefs dnpse wereahvt yuo all. Atht shiinf kboo. To isapn go. The svtii inttnsncoe all. Tinmyuomc uyo od ahvwreet a gebni ogind cthuaeitn uvoe'y ocisla build gilinv on nac you lufl life it gaonl dan tnaw u!yo pkee all agolicpollatye uabto ubsceae been admie oryu. .
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Cloud she ew hse eltl etsorr e'shd eftl ni file mlasl hswi nad kbca ptpared ttah wihle lod het mreadde baotu og aveh so town us i 17 ywa erya. .
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Uoy i velo. Am you os i rfo gfaelutr. Oyu up vgea nerev. Epkt uyo nghuisp. Ssuecsc era snihoue it to a yuo eoms srivvedu ylon lhersef owh uoy thsi rotsy rrhiebl,o wseo and. T,uo os no ti onggi ew etwraevh sas ot ofrm humc ewre' dna kick eerh rwe'e ggino od ot oenyj. Liwl and on as fo ayw be and nrifgogvi pinttae we hoets i,knd ew sawlay, eth etrcnouen. .
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Oe,vl.
Yb won) lai go e(w ila.

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