An Organization Helping Musicians Recover from Addiction
By Evy Baehr Carroll, Director of Creative Content
“We just went to Church everyone,” said actor Joel McHale right after Ben Haggerty, known as the singer Macklemore, spoke about his recovery from his drug and alcohol addiction. Macklemore is a multi-grammy award-winning musician who was receiving an award from Musicares, an organization dedicated to helping musicians receive recovery treatment from addiction. The organization has been around for 30 years and has helped major musicians financially and medically.
Many times the image of being a rock star is drug, sex and rock and roll, but we know that life does not fulfill happiness and usually is completely destructive. It was a powerful and hopeful night at the Musicares Concert for Recovery honoring Macklemore. “If I could help one person get help, become sober, it is all worth it.” Said Macklemore after a video montage showed that he helped many get in to recovery and find the closest “church basement” with an AA or NA meeting. Macklemore said time and time again that these meetings saved his life, and other artists like the lead singer in Fitz and the Tantrums and actor Rob Lowe had the same story. “I got my 29-year sober chip” joyfully said Rob Lowe, as the audience cheered.
The very last thing that Macklemore wanted to leave with the audience, after accepting his award was the Serenity Prayer: “God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change,
Courage to change the things I can, And wisdom to know the difference.” .
Here is the longer version of the prayer:
God, give me grace to accept with serenity
the things that cannot be changed,
Courage to change the things
which should be changed,
and the Wisdom to distinguish
the one from the other.
Living one day at a time,
Enjoying one moment at a time,
Accepting hardship as a pathway to peace,
Taking, as Jesus did,
This sinful world as it is,
Not as I would have it,
Trusting that You will make all things right,
If I surrender to Your will,
So that I may be reasonably happy in this life,
And supremely happy with You forever in the next.
Amen.
-Reinhold Niebuhr
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