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...

Tbu ,srggtule ouy you oyu !it yehiertvgn meso ioipertirs atwdne gto idd hgtho(u dan gc)hndae. .
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In do natmhntaa we lvie. Oruy cbuesae a ynnsu berok nad uyo uroy leeav dan idelv ot ot ardches when you a ogttuhh oen mrktae yuo evah teh aveel esradm uoy dna radg uoeclp tanaemtpr egg,srouo urigdn teh hreta tslo aenmpttra dah het itcy hesop kbsolc we asiospuc - the in rfmo snduit jsut colosh ouy dah. Od utb mih day you tosaml ro,rys knhti ryvee lslti oubta m'i. Yuo ihm ot llits hatn'ev oespkn naaig. A iwht abby e'hs nwo rdremia. Oabut thaw oyu dluow eneb rendow in a olt hitw evah uuerft ti ahtt you keil. Hatt ot nirtgy 10 teh rwee uyo vepro to yrase mhi sndep ouy ltsa trohyw. Reew ywlsaa uyo. Tguhhto udpor ihm ot fo how he uyjenro ahtt vrepo were, uyo cebame rulyt no and buoat elvo utb be eosenmo rngwo nca uyo ouy. Dwulo oprud yuo so eb so. Os odpru you aer. .
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Moer uoy tlo a irtew. Osu(aibtim, eropa evoln tbu nad ierwt a ew a optyer vhae oyu nw'eert aal?y)ws krco atdstre and. Slitl bh,deulpsi ton sit' lgoa a ety tbu. Reacre rua,molg idd ewrot iulpbsh bisnosusmi a teiwr aedm fro oyu ,rulaogm ddi ttha oyu a nreve lhenilc)atyc ferib sa oc,ne 'lwel fro fo yuo rgeihtmna os th(ye ueodnds a elik cunto utb that. Nmtregaik deaim tilcunogns tpah 'euoyr idetx,es igdeamni you on in a in krnwgio a samesvi oicsal orf ycoamnp tche nerev. Ti vole oyu. Eliirynbdc yrou dna koerrcows ratsm rae vsteiorupp. Lpcae oyur csbeeau - yruo omldnou to ouy frmo het by of ayuastnrc htiw teg call yuo idse voafriet krwo - the now ntmeaaptr yruo eiacpmdn,. .
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Arnudo lltsi si mnouodl. Nad stih eh ilwl rcecna 21 tbea msumer eb. Pelpoe on tesert het eielveb an na'tc 'seh mna old. Dna nereyg psiaetph bigen het ogd in slitl sha enorbdhigooh fro eth pyupp repnaottiu eh a. Spaeds lreyha ni yera hcarm lsta. Esh 81 wsa asw adn erdya seh. Asct amyilf horet evlo ni het nad gvea ehs uhcm os lla euidoltv hte. It bsockl emvo etram,pnat you dna ehr ehdras soimrdpe ot sutj ese hse inot akme iwht oecn nwo setramoom eunogh neo rfmo nglo bakc uoy y'uod ildev eth nad rhe ayodems ouyr ot yzacr cny uyo. Cyzar 'sit. Erh eth of adn soebrhgin ylareh apds,es i met odg neo rtfae. . . Nemda yehlar. You esh was llfulif atth iepomrs. .
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Ew eloycocmrt no a( bkei in t!k)nhas it??yc het the lods. Kwigrno no sllit e'ewr panis teh in ocodn. No ni ihhg hucsr ohoslc if eyfblri, mderi,ra acn ouy ot guy tgo ugeh you eht dha we htat ibeveel ttah. Oyu lyfrsoeu dan eb an tou yera ssel that fo hnta tuo rtdneu ooacclihl he bsviuea in a lpleud ot. Yehltah cinpgik ta ipsltsnaoehir nto encis yevr ogdo ustdni y'uore. Ts!mei mdna vree heetr yo'reu yoev'u wno, neegdga ebne ephirap nlsgei anth htat but yaw. V'yoeu ppoesrviut from nownk heva a awy all fiderns rogup rae veern voer an ni fo uoy woh eicldberin. .
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Edpe dna ig,lhnae in adh in naen,triqua nad oyu ove'uy sjtu oludomn htorwg lsat pyeailecsl eiosladt the meneism ilehw year. Egsam ehmt idvoe eamrst enev alyp mroe otrghhu sravuio dan a mte isltl mzgaain have ouy rifdsne - eiylnitdef egmsa igdno ti on myoen nad nwe yuo ,whtict ekma ttiell. Oemr arf and of od sles whta uoy yuo ynejo rstsse. .
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Stemi a lngo nad uektcb mloast a itls heva 001 ntha nwgogri rmoe fobere ahev 50 ew ew ;50. Iixengtc etlilt a girtnun saw 37 and ads. It can rets sdpen hrvtaeew in tub ielk adn hte ittell lsitl orve rea a os a okol het oyu eessnolmit ti rfo liymaf eb lal lwli su acrsd ikle teh oyu ht'sree ifel doing fo ucmh lt,fe os fseel etdons' ilke it gbi. Ookb snifih ahtt. Ot og apsin. Snenottinc hte sitvi lla. Dgnoi lflu tticnhuae ti cna ntwa ibneg ginvil ielf !you adn voe'yu oyu no eekp a csolia uibdl yalgociltlpaoe yuo all asecbeu ouyr od tboau eadmi lnago yctmoumin avtrhewe enbe. .
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She'd letl aehv in dedrema hse 17 we and coudl eth lfte rtosre og ubato iwsh nowt hiwle i ielf that dlo os esh mllsa us prpdaet kacb eyar ayw. .
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Uoy i love. For uatfgrel so i you ma. Oyu vrene aveg up. Ketp ugnpshi yuo. Vervudsi hwo aer csesucs srefhle wseo to a ebrohrl,i yuo enosuhi oems you and tsyro shti it lyon. Ckik od much ejony and ggino no ot u,ot avwreeht ew to it so form wre'e inggo r'eew erhe ssa. Toesh cueennrto sa nda adn ew awy nivrfgiog het alaws,y we eb iwll no of ,kind neitpta. .
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Vole,.
By ali e(w )won ial go.

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