When Stars Align –
November 2019 – Elton John worried that he would never be able to take the stage again after cleaning up. Joe Walsh, famed musician and longtime member of the Eagles, was afraid he would never write another song. “I tried to write, and I’d get frustrated because everything felt like something I’d already done,” Walsh says. “My alcoholic mind said, ‘Well, if you want to write a good one, you’ve got to get a little buzzed.’ But that wasn’t an option. So I had to accept that I might never write another rock ’n’ roll song and move on.” After about six months, Walsh found his footing with a song, “One Day at a Time,” that addressed his sobriety head-on.
Well I finally got around to admit that I was the problem
When I used to put the blame on
everybody’s shoulders but mine
All the friends I used to run with are gone
Lord, I hadn’t planned on livin’ this long
But I finally learned to live my life
One day at a time
Finding the way to express his commitment to sobriety in his art was a significant step in his recovery. “That’s when I discovered that maybe if I stay sober, I can show people there is life after addiction, and it’s good,” Walsh says. The fear factor that keeps some from taking steps to get sober — particularly among people with the means to explore treatment options — is tied up in the stigma long associated with substance abuse. It can feel overpowering, which is why it’s such a crucial first step for people to simply admit that they have a problem.
