Sometimes you don't go to the beach to get a tan...I learned that when I had an opportunity to meet my soul sister at the beach for a peaceful, well needed, restful weekend.  She rented a beautiful house and flew me down first class, all I had to do was show up.  I am not the type of person that flies off on a whim since flying is not really my favorite.  It's not the fear of crashing and burning that gives me agita, it's the frenetic hurry up and wait, the undressing in security, the anxiety of catching your connecting flight, and especially "when is my next meal going to happen".  So, I decided to go.
I flew into Savannah three hours late thanks to some "mechanical problems". It was 65 degrees, 25 mph winds and rainy.  I have just described the weather report for the next three days of my stay.  Was I disappointed, not at all.  I was on this beautiful island of Tybee in a huge beach house on the beach. Every window had a view of the surf smashing into the dunes, but this house was solid.  We were safe and dry, staying in our pajamas until 2 PM and drinking so much Herba Mata that our conversations would get to a ready speed. Then we would eat, then eat some more.  Not just you know the usual chips and salsa. We had pate, french bread, cheese and jalepeno queso, Whole Foods brisket, you name it, she brought it. We ate like queens.
Our daily conversations went down every side road and dirt path available, and when we were almost done we would take another jaunt down the freeway.  We even had what some people call the uncomfortable, sweaty conversations from the heart. We laughed and cried, we reconnected.
On our last night, we decided to light a fire in the fireplace. When we opened the flute a pigeon that had taken shelter from the storm flew straight out into the kitchen. We spent at least 20 minutes trying to coax it out the door or even try to catch it so it could fly and be free. Then we spent the next 20 minutes cleaning up after said pigeon so we could resume our evening.
The entire weekend with the freezing wind and weather, the constant banging of the shutters at night and even our feathered friend from the fireplace, did not dampen our spirits or our reason for being there in the first place.  You don't always go to the beach to get a tan, but what I came home with was something even more beautiful, the love and reconnection of a beautiful sister and memories unlike any other beach vacation I have had or ever will.  What a gift.