The other day, I got a nice surprise in the mail — a good friend made me a CD mix. Dragged down by deadlines and diet, I’d been having a so-so day when the little package arrived (Come on, it’s January 29. These resolutions aren’t fun anymore!  )

 

So, I popped the CD into the player and suddenly a ho-hum day was elevated to a new level. A couple of the songs made me laugh. Some made me nostalgic. Some of them made me feel pretty and powerful.  All, in one way or another, reminded me of the beauty of our friendship.

 

 

Isn’t music’s power amazing? It can transform your mood and transport you to another time.

 

Here are some songs that always take me away:

 

Bon Jovi’s LIVIN’ ON A PRAYER always makes me smile and remind me of my daughter. It has special meaning for us.

 

Don Henley’s BOYS OF SUMMER takes me way back to a relationship that wasn’t particularly good for me, but it certainly shaped me.

 

On the other hand, Madonna’s LA ISLA BONITA always leaves me a little breathless. It takes me back to a time that seems like another life ago, to careless days when it seemed I’d be young forever.

 

I remember my father listening to classic mellow  70s rock on the radio in our kitchen, but ultimately, the song that most reminds me of him is The Sound of Music’s EDELWEISS.  From Elton John to Captain von Trapp. Go figure.

 

Here’s a slightly embarrassing one – anytime I hear the Bay City Rollers’ SATURDAY NIGHT, I’m instantly in sixth grade again writing an on-going story with my best friend Callie. We used to pass a notebook back and forth. She’d write a chapter, then I would… <sigh> Good times!

 

When I hear Stevie Wonder’s SIR DUKE, I’m in junior high school marching band (yes, I was a band geek!). I can almost feel the chafe of that hot, stiff, crimson polyester uniform… and the rush of marching at halftime.

 

Oh, and I can’t forget to mention IT’S RAINING MEN by the Weather Girls – it will always and forever put a smile on my face and remind me of dancing with my girls at the annual Harlequin party.

 

Sometimes the lyrics fit the situation. Sometimes the music evokes a feeling. Either way, there’s nothing like the perfect song to transport you to a better place or a different time, like a mind vacation.

 

How about you? What are the songs that take you away or have special meaning for you?