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...

You gto !it smeo ievhergynt tbu houtgh( nad oyu did hn)edgca wdatne ptiorisire ,urlegtsg oyu. .
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Vlei od in ew aathnamnt. Ehsop goseuorg, dan uinrgd slbkoc synnu hsoolc dan hte vleid you to otughht adh aevel scabeeu yict tremtapna het ni oyur ot a eon icsuoaps you eth etmrak hvae mrfo reashdc a ardg - msdaer hnew nstiud eht ahd and copule uoy we royu atmeparnt tlos jstu kerbo eatrh leaev you uyo. Stmola ouy oubta do tisll tub y,rsro iknth 'mi hmi veyer ayd. Ksnoep you ot t'eahnv lislt mih inaag. Onw a 'esh thwi rardmie bayb. Olt eilk uyo hwti ni ti taht a uoy wodern efruut btuoa nebe duwol vhae ahtw. Alst htat ot oyu eth ewer to iygnrt sarye eropv uyo wyothr ihm 01 sndep. Ywslaa were oyu. Utb epvro ronuyje onrgw uoy of hhuotgt rupdo ebaecm nca yurtl velo eesnoom ee,rw oyu on taht oabut mih ohw to dan oyu he be. Os oluwd os uyo eb urpod. Yuo ourpd so ear. .
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A riewt oyu omer otl. Dna a avhe a utb toerpy w?sa)aly yuo enwert' elovn aresdtt ew apore crok ertwi dna siaum,(ibto. Olga a ety tno tbu ,lsphiebdu ltsil sit'. Ay)lcchnliet fo oimssnisub leik enver uyo fro ertmgahin for phuilsb eacerr ouy did (htey btu mdae ou,aglrm ountc sa dnsdueo hatt tath guo,rmal efrib wle'l a so otewr a a tweir yuo did enco,. Aidgienm ronigkw lngsntiuoc yuo sseavim ni tingkrmea no mdiae coiasl in oynapcm ,etdxesi ey'our neerv tech a a for phta. Ti uoy lvoe. Rae reocosrwk and oyur yidnelbcir soiveturpp mrtsa. Rofm oruy yasnutrac yrou ulmonod llca onw e,cdniapm fo itovfaer to kwro teh - - teh twhi yuo caepl asecebu oury by uoy teg tnpmreata isde. .
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Uradno umondol si slitl. Eb he ceacrn this 21 erumsm beta lwli and. On eht ertste dlo na vlebiee peelpo atcn' eh's mna. Ogd ttpnaeiour hbroinhoodeg eth bngei het rof nda ash pphaties eernyg he ni lilts a puppy. Larehy charm ayer ni alst easpds. Seh and seh aws dyera wsa 81. Adn the vaeg tcsa retoh she ayilfm in lla eutodivl evlo eht uhcm so. Esoaortmm yuor ckab wtih oimprsed akem nad ouy you ese rcayz ody'u adrseh ti nito stju uyo ncoe to eno unoghe hre and mvoe ot esh ycn divel rttm,anape onlg lkbcso moyesda nwo eht rhe romf. Ti's acrzy. Adn dgo the rhe eyrlha i eatrf of nihsbegor eno tme da,spes. . . Dnmea raeylh. Prsomie ehs was lfullif taht you. .
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A( tiyc?? beik eth we no !)sknhta ni ycooclmrte the dosl. Lsilt on eht ni pinsa nkgwroi ondco ewe'r. Can cursh ew ygu teh taht if ni ,bleiyfr yuo di,amrre ttah ogt ihgh ouy ahd leebvie locsoh ot no hgeu. In he fo uot a nda hatn tath uelpdl yslofrue elss ot be tou yuo tdrune na oloclihca svaeibu arey. Ta csien dogo tieplshiranos otn tahlhye tindsu yver our'ye cipnigk. Bene isngel no,w htan mdna o'euyv vere pahiepr edaeggn way ruoye' hatt tub im!est erhte. Oeyv'u evah evro way ohw oknnw ni ouy mrof a nvree ear orgup an lla iuprstvope edfnirs lindciebre of. .
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Oye'vu ,alehngi emsnmei last in lewih tjsu ahd ,niaqtarune grwhto in and eht nda aceyelslip deep eayr ioatedsl uoy lmdnoou. Nad sgame ettlil imangaz htroghu dna sgmea ongid hvea isllt uoy eietdifyln tmrsea yuo ypla nwe oneym a aroiusv emor veen htwtic, ehmt oidev ti ekam emt - no dsniref. Of ssel meor do nad tssrse ouy awth ouy raf jyoen. .
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Nlog rwnggio 50 latosm a 010 oefrbe list adn 50; imtse evah oemr a ntah we ew ahve kecutb. Tnicigxe utngrin saw and das leltit 73 a. Kiel epnds can mhuc oesnt'd tub e,ftl it keli the lwil eer'tsh ear us of iognd in lyimaf it ti for eltitl dan feil eth vero yuo you eb adsrc look a so eefsl lla tolsisneme hte treahevw a ikle igb erst os llist. Hinfsi kboo ahtt. Pansi to go. Teh encontints ivist all. Terwhave oyu mieda uneaichtt acn aceesbu vilnig lgleoaayctiplo csolia yuo! nloga yevo'u efil oury atnw ymtmcniou peek do dna been it all yuo a on goidn ngieb iblud outab flul. .
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Cluod hilew ayre 71 ldo in eadmrde nad llet shde' abkc prptade os ehs iwsh ew mslla eilf go boatu i ttha town ayw etfl us vhae she osterr eth. .
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I you vleo. Am os aegrfult rfo ouy i. Reven gvea ouy up. Eptk hsinpgu yuo. Ti nisoheu eosw uoy woh a hist yuo ot fseehrl ryots nda ynlo rblor,hei srvideuv scuescs rea eosm. To much ot morf ew niogg tu,o so kkci ssa 'erew ahveewrt rew'e do noggi and eher yeonj no ti. K,ind awy atitpen dna on eb aalsyw, ew lilw rgfoiinvg oecreutnn otseh fo sa and hte ew. .
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Lvoe,.
Won) go (ew ial ali by.

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