Hi everyone.  Hope you are all well and continue to stay that way during this global health crisis we are facing.  But in addition to protecting your physical wellness, what are you doing to stay mentally healthy today?

(Image found online.  Original source unknown.)

I know we are still facing a serious situation but a new year gives us hope for the new days, seasons, opportunities & moments ahead. Still, music is something that will never change for me. It is my refuge, the most comforting part of my life & the one thing I consistently count on. So until a more normal semblance of life returns, I am going to share a song I listen to that helps me escape the current state of things, if only for a few minutes each day. And if this helps anyone else, even better.

I have nine 45’s from my childhood that belonged to my mother. I keep them for sentimental reasons only as they were worn out years ago. She played them thousands of times when I was a kid and to this day I remember every note & every lyric of each song. Sometimes my myopic view about them makes me forget that these songs may not have the same meaning to others as they do to me.

When I was in college I had a smart funny hopelessly romantic friend who did not always make the best choices when it came to boyfriends. One guy in particular took her for granted and constantly told her he needed room to roam which she gladly afforded him. This made me crazy. But eventually all my pleadings to my friend to reconsider the relationship fell on dead ears. So I turned to music to make my case. One night when she came home from a date with the creep, I played today’s song. She did not appreciate my efforts and a fight ensued but I was happy I got my point across.

The next morning we called a truce so we could eat breakfast in peace. During the meal she asked me how I chose the song I played for her. I explained it was one of my mom’s favorites and we sang it together hundreds of times. My friend stared at me in disbelief and asked me how a mother would encourage her young daughter to sing along to lyrics like “Girl you’re a hot blooded woman child & its warm where you’re touching me”. I did not understand my friend’s inference or her “First 48” vibe so I reminded her the song was from the 1970’s which was an innocent time. She remembered it as the decade of swingers & key parties.

Then she put the record on and we both listened to each and every word like it was the first time we heard it & we both learned more than we bargained for. But it was worth it to watch my friend get her self respect back when she kicked the loser she was dating out of her life, even if I had to sacrifice one of my most cherished childhood memories to help her do that. But I still love today’s song & I think my friend & my mother would be OK with that. It was written by Mac Davis, the country singer-songwriter who wrote “In The Ghetto”, Memories”, “Don’t Cry Daddy” & “A Little Less Conversation” for Elvis Presley. But Davis kept today’s song for himself and took it to #1 for three weeks in the fall of 1972. We lost this extremely talented man last fall but today we remember him on his 79th birth anniversary.

“Girl you’re a hot-blooded woman child
And it’s warm where you’re touching me
But I can tell by your trembling smile
You’re seeing way too much in me“.

Mac Davis circa 1973. (Image found online.  Original source unknown.)

Mac Davis: “Baby Don’t Get Hooked On Me” (1972, written by Mac Davis).

I do not own the rights to anything.  I am just sharing what I love and how I am coping with you.

Stay well.