IT WAS an ordinary autumn weekend afternoon spent wandering the streets of Milan ahead of the start of my attending an international space conference in the city.
After vying with the crowds in several bustling tourist areas, it was with much relief that I turned into a quieter street away from the hordes.
The buildings, compared to the majesty of the Duomo Cathedral nearby, were plainer though still exuded an under-stated Italian style.
Then, rounding a corner, I took an unexpected and sudden leap into the future! Above a deep shop window were three captivating words - ‘The Longevity Suite’.
Bullet points etched into the sign beneath listed a ‘Cryosuite’ and the services of ‘Advanced Bio-hacking’, each of which only exercised my fertile imagination further.
Behind the semi-obscured glass were two female receptionists, identically dressed and each with long, dark hair, chatting across the counter to a potential new client.
For a few moments ‘The Longevity Suite’ and its setting in the back streets of Milan spun a tale of the future where the dream of extending the natural lifespan of humans had become reality.
In the dimming light of late afternoon, I realised the sign was really nothing more than over-hyped marketing cleverly designed to give the wealthy something to spend their money on.
But in this writer’s mind my short Italian sojourn had, if nothing else, sown the seeds for a futuristic story of morality, a doorway in time perhaps through which the Holy Grail of eternal life beckoned.
