And then the unexpected happens....

Our second day in Miami began with some unexpected news. My friend received word from her family that her grandmother had passed away. One moment we were celebrating another year of life, only to be grieving the loss of another hours later. I feel bad that my friend will always have to remember her 30th as the year she lost someone so important to her, the day after her birthday...but God has a way of bringing some form of growth, lesson or understanding from every situation we go through.

After a few hours of grieving we decided to take a walk on the road behind our hotel leading to South Beach/Ocean Drive... It was therapeutic and bittersweet. It is always painful to lose someone you love. But in the midst of life, we sometimes get so caught up in what is going on that we tend to forget about the fragility of life. We have to cherish every moment. Love the people we have with us, because life is not promised & we will not live forever. There is so much living to do in life, that goes far beyond just merely being alive......

After our 7 mile journey down the boardwalk and back, I was exhausted and really wanted to just take a long shower and nap. My friends went down to the pool while I got my rest...
After my long hiatus in the room, I went down and joined them and we played around on the beach until it was time to get ready to go out for the evening...

We took a taxi ride over to Espanola Way for dinner at an amazing Italian restaurant. I didn't take many pictures because I was too busy stuffing my face... After dinner we listened to music at a popular sushi spot then went to club Liv in the Fountainbleau hotel... Definitely was not my scene but the club was realllllllllllly nice....

The next day we all went our separate ways for the morning. My best friends roommate and I headed out in search of authentic Cuban or Haitian cuisine. We ended up at a spot with the most amazing mango daquiris & pineapple mojitos. Best money I have ever spent on a meal, because the food was DELICIOUS....

We also got the chance to pick up souvenirs, before meeting up with some of the other girls at the Clevelander. We then walked down to Wet Willie's for drinks before heading to the public beach. On our way to the water we made friends with a big group of guys in town from Virginia. They were super cool and hung out with us for the rest of the afternoon... They were even kind enough to give us a ride back to our hotel on their scooters o_O

After our full day of activities we wanted to relax in the hot tub and just have some down time.... While we were sitting in the hot tub a random older gentleman came over and asked if he could join us. Once he got comfortable we all began talking and we came onto the subject of purpose & pursuing happiness. When I tell you this man must have been an angel sent from heaven, I seriously mean it. By the time we finished talking we were all in tears and fulfilled with a renewed sense of purpose. Sometimes God sends a message straight to you, its all about being open to receive it.

And after all of this it was finally time to head back home....