YA/NA Readers: What are you going to do with your century?

How would you feel if someone promised you'd see your hundredth birthday?

Seriously.

Suddenly thoughts like, "I don't have time for that" seem silly.

Time to invest in long term projects. Plant a forest. Build something big and complicated. Go to med school. Write a book--or twelve.

Save the planet.

Unless you are already senescing, you've got an excellent chance of living to three digits.

Avoid stupid accidents, eat a healthy diet, pay attention to actual scientists and medical doctors rather than con artists and quacks.

Threescore and ten was the unscientific rule of thumb. That's in the rear view mirror now, unless our civilization falls.

Medical and scientific research is advancing human lifespan faster than you are living.

Think about that.

You are going to outlive all the negativity and nonsense you see in the present moment.

The new reality is that all four of my grandparents lived well past their actuarial term, and my youngest grandmother only died when she did because she ignored doctors and went to quacks to treat a series of cancers. Don't be like Steve Jobs.

When I read YA/NA grounded fiction, I want to see characters who take their centenary as given. It's a different attitude. Some call it hopepunk. I think protopian is more accurate.

Look at Lois McMaster Bujold's Betan characters, including Miles Naismith Vorkosigan, relying on a life expectancy of 130 or more because they take science seriously. Even teen Miles remarks on the expectations of his mother and grandmother and other Betans he knows.

So, what are you going to do with your century?