St. Elmo's Fire And The Wheels It Turned

When I was a teenager, I would start each school year with a new inspirational song. My first year at Cottonwood High School I chose the movie St. Elmo's Fire soundtrack main theme, entitled, "Man In Motion". I had, had such a rotten few years at Bonneville Jr. High that I was ready to move on from being teased and picked on all the time for my teeth and bike (see entries: Teachers That Have Influenced My Life and Dear 16 Year Old Self for deeper understanding).  I knew from the way the lyrics touched me that this song meant I could create something new for the life that I was wanting to live.

 Yesterday, I was listening to XM Radio's 80's on 8. Martha Quinn (of MTV deejay fame), told us listeners, that the St. Elmo's Fire theme lyrics were not really written for the movie, but were really written about a man named Rick Hansen who had sustained a Spinal Injury when he was 15.

I had never heard the story before, so today I decided to research a little bit more about Rick. What an amazing song for an amazing man. I am going to let John Parr, the man who wrote the Lyrics, introduce you to Rick's story.