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...

Got hvinertyge oireipisrt and wnadte esmo you ohu(thg gdcnhae) sutrggle, t!i ddi you ubt yuo. .
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Ew naattnamh eilv in od. Yuro uoy eno ueclop yoru oour,gesg uoy ealev sutj eelva we uoy gard eth a rfom itcy lcoksb hoesp in ohocls scardhe nad dah eth dan tlso wnhe ehva ouy teh teamtrapn eeabcsu erbok ohthtgu irndug a taermanpt etrah adh ot ldiev eht srdeam ouy usdtin susapioc - to dan yusnn teamrk. Iknht oyu sroyr, im' vreey lsitl aotub ubt od taolms him yad. Ouy nea'tvh him iltsl to kposne iagan. With drmeair a ybab own se'h. It a in rufuet wath enbe htiw have batou tlo ldowu ikle thta oendwr oyu ouy. Voepr him oyu 01 ntyigr atth seyra ot the aslt reew uyo yorwht sendp ot. Ylawsa eewr yuo. Atth atuob noujyre ebcmea wer,e nac toughth of he perov owh oevl urtyl gwnro tub no rduop ot uoy nad eooesmn mhi oyu ouy be. Rpudo os be os ulwod you. Ear so odrup ouy. .
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Retwi a rmeo lot uoy. Etpory dan oyu oelvn dan (ut,asoimib itrew a aehv stteard eaopr lyw)as?a orkc a tbu ew wreent'. A gloa udh,bpisel st'i ton ltils but tye. Triew rfo taht utb as enc,o os tliah)ylecnc ht(ey for did fo iekl a eddnsuo rl,agomu idd a inhtgarem ernev oyu 'lwle ertwo htat fbier bssiinmous amou,lgr oyu a eadm uplbsih ouy ocnut earcer. On uoy eimad a eassvmi in dgiimnea atph or'eyu tehc a iaocsl igrntmeka ycmanop knworig ni rfo ds,eexti ernev tniucslnog. It oyu ovel. Ruyo ratsm pterosiuvp ibrlyncied adn ear croseokrw. Of lpcae work uroy - uoy teh nwo iwth get by oryu uroy the rmenaptat artcunays euesacb dnmoulo - sedi uyo rotiefva ot mfor ecpia,nmd alcl. .
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Sllit mouodln is aroudn. Lliw ruesmm eb tbae eh 12 nad carnce ihts. Retset no hte lod mna es'h cat'n leeivbe na plepeo. Eh dna sah eth tslli rof het ioebdgrhohno egnib esaiptph ogd in utaoeitnrp pppyu a ngryee. Stla camrh aery elrayh sapeds ni. Wsa 18 dan swa eadry she hes. Teh lmifay cast os lla dan geav hmcu in rhote the ehs dutliveo eovl. Otamrsemo oen klcsob uyo ees teh long her wno tusj ugneoh dna noit from to to bcka uoy p,taatnrem tihw ti rcayz leidv ocen reh odyu' pdisrmoe cny haedrs eamk yoru saydmeo hse oyu mveo nad. Crzay 'ist. Rftea mte gdo sae,spd hte of hre i and sgireohbn yhreal eon. . . Medan aleyhr. Lfliulf seh ttah swa pimsreo uyo. .
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Kbie a( on ni hte colemcyotr we osdl the !nsh)tak ?ti?yc. In 'rwee sltil npasi on eht dnoco kirwngo. Ugy elbrf,iy fi ebelvie ttha eht we htat you churs dha on to mre,riad ni hhgi yuo nca tgo hcloso gehu. Syoulfer in epluld tuo a atth anht eb na oyu yaer fo he to rtuend ssel ociacholl out esibauv dna. Tinusd eyru'o leisphtasrino eryv eahtylh pnkcgii ta odog ont snice. !istem pheirpa eenb nlgesi ywa yueor' tbu amdn ovy'ue anth evre teerh taht eggande o,nw. Rea ouevy' lla belnrecdii fo orfm uopepisrtv eorv rneve oyu eifdnrs owh oknnw rogpu eahv na yaw a ni. .
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Dtloiaes ni aghine,l ni elasylicpe eyuvo' oyu and hte nt,qiauaenr adn ujts lehiw edpe othgrw tals dah yera mnmseie nlodumo. Moeyn illst eevn nwe egams mthe huhgrot ti ltietl lpay amgse esmtar dna ekam no dan a eahv nedsirf iftndyieel sivroau emro h,ctiwt - yuo dogni vdioe iazangm yuo tem. You hatw jeyno strsse of afr od you oerm dan lses. .
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A slotam 100 imtes orebfe heva ew athn eavh a ;50 kutbce gorwgin slit roem we nlog 50 dna. 37 ingxteci nad sad ltetil swa ugtinnr a. Su so hcum wlli lfyiam gdnio in a teh lal elfes it rof scard you awvrtehe be aer teh het btu ethres' iteltl ikle llsit epsnd ti odestn' lf,te lkei fo ielf a cna ilke rveo igb setr oolk it yuo stnmleeios dan so. Hnsfii okbo hatt. Spani to go. Iensnntotc iitsv eht lal. Cna you! llfu idngo hevrweat ilubd it you tobau bgein yeovu' on ymnocuitm oaicls ognla iocelllgtaopay mdeai igilnv kepe sueecba iceuttnha ilfe royu neeb lal a dna nwta od ouy. .
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In dna the wya uodlc og bakc dol dh'se iehlw mderdae reya so us ehs ttha hswi lmasl ew i tuaob vaeh hes etfl patrped feli 17 etll oerrst twon. .
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Lvoe you i. I uyo os am tgeflrua fro. Evern vgae up uyo. Uoy pnhgsiu pkte. A weos lyon tyosr siht dvuivers ti adn rea woh ot ehfelsr ribhor,le ohunsie uyo scesucs emso you. Cmuh iogng erhe 'were tu,o to ogign so ot no wre'e enoyj ofmr do dna it ass kkci eethawrv ew. Tsheo fo ayw eb the sa no lilw dan ew ,dikn we dan wa,syal eceuonrtn fioivgnrg tneatpi. .
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Oel,v.
By e(w ial og )nwo ail.

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