I'm back home after an epic week in the UK and in my head I'm doing all kinds of calculations as to how everything went and how I can sum up the whole experience. I might exaggerate here and there just a little but this is how my week in Newbold looked like in numbers.

It was:
- 1st time to visit the National Gallery with A. N.
- 5th time to preach at The Experience
- 76th time to go to Stags with a good friend on Friday afternoon
- 1st time to visit Downton Abbey
- 634th time to eat fruit salad in the caf on Friday evening
- 1st time to see a musical in London
- 786th time to take a beating in table tennis
- 1st time to sit on the Sabbath Sofa
- 100 000th time to sit at my desk in the library
- 1st time to give a public lecture
Not bad for one week, I reckon.

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But the lecture then. I think it went well. I had never given a public lecture before and that made the whole preparation process quite long and exhausting but the event itself was thoroughly enjoyable. There were so many good people there, some whom I had invited and some I was hoping would come, plus some I didn't even dare to dream would/could show up. Like, just a little less than an hour before the lecture I ran into... B.! He just stood there, in front of the library, looking like young Cornel West with his big hair and white shirt. Man, I almost cried. B.! All the way from Norway! And on the top of my best friends there were a whole bunch of my old lecturers. Dr M. P. said to me afterwards it was the first time he's ever seen Dr A. N. showing up to the diversity lecture. It was really really touching. I truly felt their support. And yeah, that was it, I spoke for about 50 minutes and enjoyed myself. But as soon as I was finished, I was finished. The Q/A session afterwards was a bit too much (that happens when you go musical-ing in London the night before and get to bed way too late). There was a moment during the Q/A when I literally forgot the main term I had spoken about (cognitive linguistics), I actually tried to go back to my notes and find the term because it was totally gone from my head. That's when I realised I wasn't sharp enough for those questions. But thank goodness, A. N. and K. (bless them!) came to my rescue more than just once and helped me out with answers...

Some really good conversations happened after the lecture. Serious ones.

And when we finally finished talking (it was about quarter to eleven) and made our way out of the Smith Centre with S. and B. and H. and Dr M. P. & The Lady, for a brief moment I felt like I had really come home and had truly been myself. I hope the memory of this feeling will stay with me for a long time. I'll need it.

And in the end, when I went to bed after a midnight tea with S. and B. I thought about the whole day and couldn't think of one thing I wish had been different. It pretty much ended up being a perfect day. Wow.

Midnight tea with S. and B.