11/22 nineteen (in Newport) and a vow

This weekend, I turned nineteen. It's not really a milestone age, but it is the first birthday I spent without my family...and it was a good one (thanks to the greatest friends a girl can ask for).
A group of my friends and I took a Zipcar and went to Newport, Rhode Island's beach town. One of my favorite things to do ever is driving, and I was so freaking happy and excited to be driving on my birthday.

Once we got to Newport, we hit up a random beach. As soon as I was out of the car, I took off my shoes and socks and got my feet wet. The water was so cold I felt like my feet were going to fall off, but the cold water was also somehow really nice and comforting.

We stayed at the beach for awhile until we finally left to go on the Newport Cliff Walk. We were supposed to see some beautiful mansions on the walk, but I don't think we walked enough of the Cliff Walk to actually get to the mansions haha. The super super duper awesome thing about the Cliff Walk though was the CLIFFS. So freaking beautiful and cool and just so calming. It's weird how the crashing of waves on rocks is calming.

When we were getting tired of walking and 45 degree wind, we walked back to the car, got in, and drove. There was no real destination--I just wanted to drive. I wanted to drive and see more beaches. I wanted to feel a bit spontaneous. And I'm glad I did because we eventually came upon this view:

On our way home to Providence, we grabbed some McDonalds. I will be the first to admit that I miss McDonalds, the nasty nasty fast food chain. It's a gross confession, and I can't exactly be proud of it, but it is what it is, ya know? I love me a BigMac, some McNuggets, and amazing fries. So, thanks to my kind, food-sharing roommate, I got it.

Back in Providence, I grabbed dinner with my Catalyst Pham. It was also my dearest friend Sarah's birthday too!! It was sweet having so many Catalyst people together in such a long time. They're the coolest people.

Alas, as my first weekend of being a 19-year old comes to a close, my heart is full of love and gratitude. After an extra tough week, I was reminded of how lucky I am. I am blessed with the greatest support system ever, and I am especially lucky to know that there is always someone there for me when I am in need. In these times of gratitude, I think about the people in the world who are not as lucky. There are people in the world who feel lonely or unwanted, whether for a short period of time or for their entire lives. Whatever the degree, those feelings are the worst feelings in the entire world, and no one should ever have to feel them.
So, this year, I promise to do all that I can to make people feel loved and wanted. How will I do this, you ask? Honestly, I'm not 100% sure, but I have a pretty solid idea, and it starts with a smile.