Suddenly it’s time.

I’m writing this from a corner of Heathrow airport where I’ve managed to get myself a seat (with a built in socket where you can charge your phone – brilliant). The British rugby team just walked by and on the big screen across Zlatan Ibrahimovic just appeared on BBC news.

It feels a bit surreal that the day when I fly to the US is suddenly here. I’ve done my very best to enjoy my last few days at home, to the extent that my parents declared me to have a severe case of the travel jitters (and they are both doctors so maybe they can claim to have the diagnostic skills to be able to tell), as I have been travelling across half of Europe and Sweden to visit friends and hug people goodbye. And when at 3pm yesterday my bag was still empty I was starting to wondering if maybe they were right.

Italy

One thing has struck me this past week, and that is how much better long hugs are compared to short ones. This might sound silly, but the number of long and really heartfelt hugs I have been so lucky to give and receive these past days have made me believe that there might be something to the science that says that the optimal hug length is 20 seconds for all the good hormones to be released.
So, now that you have finished reading here, I urge you to go and hug someone and hold on for a bit.

I’m about to get on my flight to San Diego. Big hug and take care.