Let Andy Andrews, "That Storytellin' Guy" Save YOUR Road Trip!

By Devon O'Day

The car is loaded to the windows with pillows, blankets, car games, and inflatable pool toys. The cooler is stocked with ice cold sodas and baloney sandwiches for the road. This is the only time all year that the kids bound out of bed with excitement without the aid of an alarm clock. THIS is the family vacation road trip! Whether it's to Disney or a visit to the grandparent's farm, vacation road trips are happening all over the country at this time of year. Families who are often ships passing in the night with school and work schedules are "joined" or should I say, "imprisoned" with their loving relations for hundreds of miles and eternities it seems of "togetherness". Sometimes an entire family can't even get to the end of the driveway without hearing, "I'm bored."

We, unfortunately, are not one of those families. In the age of technology wrapping it's kudzu like talons around our youngsters, their little brains seem to implode if they spend more than a millisecond without something being piped in, plugged in, or pounding their senses. The modern family can be seen heading down the highway with each passenger's head encased in their own set of headphones, watching something different or listening to something different. Gone are the days of spending family time on a road trip talking, collecting 'points' based on the color of Volkswagen Beetles that pass, or logging license plates from the 50 states. Family interaction is becoming extinct, it seems on the modern day vacation drive. However, let me share how one family road trip was saved by a storyteller.

Picture this . . . a constant nagging of "I'm bored", "I'm hungry", "I need a bathroom break", and a million exit stops it seems before we'd gone a hundred miles. At this rate, our family would have been faster traveling by mule train. Then we slipped in an audio book by Andy Andrews called, "The Rocking Chair Classics". These folksy stories were warm and inviting. They pulled us in and made us all feel we'd been sitting on the front porch hearing stories by a master story teller. We laughed together. We adults remembered our own childhood. The kids asked if "that's what life was like in the olden days." When we finally got to the story, "Baseball Boys and Bad Words," giggles literally erupted out loud from the car. If people had passed our car on the highway, we would have been a picture of side splitting humor and emotive joy. When the CD ended, we all felt disappointed that it was over. Remember as a kid, eating a fudge-pop on a hot summer day? The beginning was great, but the last bite made you a little sad, because it was finished? Well we all looked like we'd eaten the last bite of our fudge-pop.

"Don't you have any more CDs of that guy telling stories," piped a little voice from the back seat. Well, as a matter of fact, I did. We began 'reading' with our ears, as America's modern day Will Rogers shared "The Traveler's Gift", Andy Andrews' New York Times Bestselling book. The cavalcade of history and the treasures shared by the heroes along the storyline, had us so engrossed, we didn't want to get out of the car to have dinner. So, we went through a drive-through and kept listening.

We listened to "The Lost Choice", Andy Andrews' next novel, and felt like we were a part of the story. The characters were so delightful, it was like watching a movie, reading a great book, and hearing old time radio theatre, all at the same time. Andy does these unbelievably true to life voices and accents of each character. It sounds like a team of actors have moved into your audio speakers. We moved through a host of intriguing stories and inspiring lessons. Upon exploration of Andy's website, we found twelve different 'trip-savers' with audio books and speeches that we could own. Each captivated us in a different way.

Not only did Andy Andrews keep us interested and at our destination before the week was up, he left us all with a nugget of truth to make life a little better. We laughed as a family. We actually enjoyed the road trip. We connected through the folksy wisdom of a true story-teller. We now use some of Andy's slogans in our every day speech when we are trying to encourage each other.

"Burn the boats!"

"Choose your friends wisely."

"I will find a way, when there is no way."

It's like traveling with Mark Twain and Bear Bryant sharing personal stories of triumph to encourage you and your family along the journey. There's also the added benefit of values and good old-fashioned morals that happen naturally in Andy Andrews' stories, too.

With a CD player loaded up with audio books by Andy Andrews, it became apparent to us that on a family road trip it's not just the journey's end, but getting there that could make a lasting impact on our lives. Now, if Andy Andrews could only come up with a story that could solve that problem of 'the last bite of fudge-pop' . . .

Devon O'Day, a twenty-plus year radio broadcast veteran and is now heard nationwide on Country Hitmakers, radio's longest running radio magazine . . . Weekend Nights on SIRIUS satellite radio's Spirit Channel . . . and Sunday mornings on WSIX's Country Spirit Show. Her voice is used on national campaigns from companies like KFC, Morton Buildings, and Lifeview Resources Medical Films . . . to Billy Graham Evangelical films and promotions. Her book, "My Angels Wear Fur" is in it's fourth printing and remains one of Thomas Nelson Books' Bestsellers.

To make Andy Andrews part of YOUR next road trip, check out the Road Trip Audio Package. It is available in the Andy Andrews online store here: http://store.andyandrews.com/Detail.bok?no=64

PS- To meet Andy PERSONALLY, spend a weekend with him and other "travelers", and learn powerful principles on the journey of a lifetime, you need to attend The Guided Traveler Experience. Learn more here: http://www.guidedtraveler.com