Publisher's Synopsis
I must begin my latest venture into the world of the November Book Challenge with a brief explanation of what brought me here. The serpentine route I took to get my Point A to Point B is mapped with good intentions, a love of music, and my dedication to my family, to my career, and to my Al-Anon program. Sirius Radio has been my saving grace. The first three things I do when I get into the car are fasten my seat belt, turn on the ignition, and turn on the radio. Those three simple tasks get my day started, and they provide me with the impetus to do what I choose to do each and every day. The channels I listen to provide me with inspiration and words of encouragement; The Message, The Blend, The Broadway Channel, Love, and Joel Osteen Radio are my companions on the road to and from school and home. While I was contemplating the subject of my fifth book, I realized that I could kill two birds with one stone. I have been the District Representative for District 26 in Al-Anon for the past six years, and part of my position has asked me to do service and provide a message of recovery for anyone interested in hearing about my experience, strength, and hope. The twelfth step in Al-Anon explains that as part of having a spiritual awakening, I should spread this message and incorporate it into all aspects of my daily life. Here was the quandary. How could I talk about Al-Anon and make the connection to what I listen to on Sirius Radio on a daily basis? That formed the premise of my current project and enabled me to take this journey of self-discovery for myself and for anyone else interested in this proposal. The rest of this book breaks down the process in several ways. I have included the song lyrics with the title. Then I have analyzed the song on a number of levels to provide you, the reader, with my interpretation of the song's message and how it dovetails with the basic message of Al-Anon. My disclaimer at this point is that this is not CAL (Conference Approved Literature), but simply my own humble interpretation of the words contained herein. If I offend anyone with my take on the songs and the connection, I apologize here and now. As you read the song lyrics and interpret the meanings for yourself, realize where I was coming from as I presented my own thoughts and views of the material. In the Al-Anon program, we stress the fact that this recovery program is a spiritual philosophy, not a religious mantra. A number of the songs refer to God, but anyone can have a Higher Power to turn to in his or her time of need. I also have morphed my feelings toward the messages contained in this volume into a vision that melds a Higher Power and the people in the program into a unified support system. Therefore, you may see that when I discuss the individual songs, I could be reaching out or appealing to more than one possible source of help. I have also included profiles of the contributors in this volume. These short biographical excerpts are taken from Wikipedia, which is only one place to find background information on these artists and their songs, music, and messages. My third section provides the reader with a discography of the songs and where they can be located on Sirius Radio. While there are hundreds of channels available on this service, I only used the ones I listen to on my radio or computer. Feel free to explore the entire Sirius Radio network at your leisure. Are you ready to begin this musical journey? I hope you enjoy yourself, and if you bring away any message that helps make your life a better one, then I will have done what I intended to do from the beginning.
