feeling...

Peaceful right?

feeling... sharp. dangerous. full of attitude. which, I guess, is just what a girl about to go to college ought to feel like. When you, future Anna, get this, it'll be ten years from now, and the passport that you got today will have expired. How was going to school in another country? Was it far enough away from your parents? What prompted past-you to write this (besides the fact that the trusty sketchbook/journal has gone missing) is the fact that, among all of the suitcases you were looking for in the attic today, you also found a hefty dose of family history. History from 1840. A picture of the family goat. Hand drawn sketches of the cottage. Letters back and forth between two feuding families. One family claims its daughter was starved to death whilst visiting the other. The other family is outraged because of a false arrest upon an unfounded accusation of THEIR daughter being a member of a house of prostitution. All insults and accusations in flowery, minute, faint 1840's penmanship, of course. I don't even know what the point of this email is. I just think it's weird that on the eve of your departure to distance yourself from your family, just when you're feeling incredibly independent, the attic delivers. Now, past-you wants to stay connected, be Bess's great great great great granddaughter, add her own tale to the many family stories. Past-you wants to stay in the attic forever, reading the family history. But I guess that's why college is good. So you can get the hell out of that attic and this house and make your own history. Go on.

Epilogue

3 days later

Ten years ago, I was a senior in high school aching to go to college as far away from home as possible. I wanted to see other countries and make...

Oestrsi my nwo. Elvae pufoehl tefl idet moeh ot i but to euomaltmnn sa i — ok that neve yerihvtegn wsa nnpaeld dan t,i ftel. Ngwis pu frutue my no einohgsmt eoebfr eilk me asw pnneoig. .
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Esitmemso rou ertuuf eb you czyar dweip nda ’sit can acn how yawa w?hta het tub kwon eislv olces ni,gaa ndow. Dlvei onenay uabot lwle lttree 2200 ahs thsi solnes rsyea ,lewl aws i riwetnt how tetypr teh lnredae ten rftea ohmtsn htta oskwn ttah, ubt six goa eboref uhthgor. I torrbhe — sndgeaodi nda was raeccn wtih ym.
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Smatlo a,ys nghoue rehet to htt’sa thrig. Xieeree,cpn efw thoghu hte eochm a eht veen asyre hidsifen lyeevultan ni ithw ot atref enevr ned akngit dna off mih ayliptc ogt i i be eoleglc tnhe hitw lpeh. I eamk fesl eb be gto or or rycoun,t og i ni ot hwlie ctylpia tath vrene olcelge atyeo-renga- fi rneaoht ym yahpp ot id’ m,eosremi ecelogl eaditgtnn eevn eg,clloe easattdvde ltdo. Of my opohmsura wnko soem fo the eht slso to ubt cepoglle-oeh ossl si onw prademco that gthnoin rbehrto i.
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Mltelcepyo dna idetnrfef mimssoeet fels ym at dol kiel a olko fmro efle reh reay eronsp 18 i i back. Hre ueivrens, pllalaer igaienm in i fo teim isgeixtn heemrwseo tsdoeui nteh but a. Ot atht erhte aayw itrgnwi in ehr lttree nda efli and anngtiw rttsa utoab ntisitg rolw,d iths teg s’seh. Uilggahn nad nad tsuj dan no onti htne eidnrfs ottgrhee b’tsrrhoe nda ,atr itsitng dna ngogi ses’h tbauo iakngm ,moro nrdgwenai and eht adn ehey’rt wnod her kalsw soeciok flroo nda siucm gkatinl now fro. Llwi go eb ti tne gothreet to rehy’te yad hetnorrn ahtt htye het ot orme to nego adn fo nlgatki hatt rase,y adn hwo ese rmseda enon eavh ni gtlkina fo lshtg,i neo one lwli lkei life the no one ghtri the enidpnsg not olok lwil miemeors tabuo dnialce emit ehtro nloy trasmet ayd to watn relizaing oaubt dhol htem anht o,wn wtha to. Was reifdn eh my tesb.

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