Unforgettable Life

   With more than 20 million records sold, and several Grammy awards to show for it, Natalie Cole, the daughter of famous singer Nat King Cole, has made a name for herself in music. 
   Along with her great success, however, Natalie Cole has lived in a world of drugs, crime, and failed marriages. 
   "I have been to hell and back," she says. 
   In the book Angel on My Shoulder, Cole gives us an honest look at the difficult path she has taken, sharing, as well, her successful recovery. 
   "Where I'm at now helps me to look back on my life and realize that I've really had quite a colorful and rich life," she says. "I really could have turned out to be a different person." 
   As the second daughter of Maria and Nat King Cole, Natalie had as normal a childhood as was possible for a little girl whose father spent much of his time away from home. With hopes of one day becoming a doctor, she left her family in Los Angeles to attend a boarding school on the east coast. But when she was 14, she received some terrible news: her father was dying of lung cancer. Less than two months later, in 1965, Nat King Cole died at the age of 47. 
   During her college years at Amherst, Cole began to experiment with drugs, though they didn't stop her from joining a music group. She played in small clubs on the east coast, using drugs more and more frequently. 
   Without enough money to pay the bills and to support her drug habit, Cole turned to stealing and got into trouble with the law. Eventually, she became so badly affected by the drugs that she decided to quit on the spot. 
   She says it was a miracle — the work of an angel on her shoulder. Her drug habit kicked, Natalie's career really began to take off. Only two years after being arrested and almost dying because of drugs, Cole's first record won two Grammies. 
   In 1976, she married Marvin Yancy, her songwriter and producer. They soon had a son, Robbie, and Cole's life really seemed to be coming together. 
   "Marriage to Marvin, and Robbie, was like a breath of pure, fresh air," she says. "I was with a man whom I loved and who loved me...we were just so close." 
   Sadly, the marriage wouldn't last. After four years of being drug-free, Cole was once again using. 
   In 1983, Cole checked herself into a recovery program, and was finally able to mend the wounds from her difficult past. 
   After narrowly escaping death once again, Cole decided to record her father's greatest hits, including the phenomenal success Unforgettable: With Love. 
   Cole, who has fought and won many battles to find personal happiness, says "I'm so grateful for the way my life has turned out."

唱片销量超过两千万张，并因此而赢得数项格莱美奖，纳塔利·科尔——著名歌手纳特·金·科尔的女儿——在音乐界一举成名。
然而，除了巨大的成功之外，纳塔利·科尔的世界里还曾充斥着毒品、犯罪和失败的婚姻。
“我去过地狱，又回来了。”她说。
在《我肩膀上的天使》一书里，科尔真实地向我们展现了她走过的艰难道路，也讲述了她如何成功地康复。
“我现在所拥有的一切让我回顾我的人生，并认识到我的生活是多么地丰富多彩，”她说。
“我真的有可能会成为另一个不同的人。”
纳塔利是玛利亚和纳特·金·科尔的二女儿，对于一个父亲时常不在家的小女孩来说，她的童年已经算是够正常的了。
怀着做一名医生的愿望，她离开了洛杉矶的家，去往东海岸上寄宿学校。
但在14岁那年，噩耗传来：她的父亲患了肺癌，已经奄奄一息。
不到两个月，也就是1965年，纳特·金·科尔去世了，终年47岁。
在阿默斯特上大学期间，科尔开始尝试吸毒，不过毒品并没有妨碍她参加一个音乐组合。
她在东海岸的一些小俱乐部里表演，吸毒也越来越频繁。
因为没有足够的钱支付账单和购买毒品，科尔开始偷盗，后来惹上了官司。
由于深受毒品之害，她终于下定决心立即戒毒。
她说那是个奇迹——是她肩膀上的天使创造的。
戒毒后，纳塔利的事业真正开始蒸蒸日上。
在经历了被捕和因吸毒而差点送命仅仅两年之后，科尔的首张唱片便赢得了两项格莱美奖。
1976年，她嫁给了她的歌曲创作人兼制作人马文·扬西。
他们很快有了一个儿子——罗比，科尔的生活似乎真的是日臻完善。
“与马文的婚姻，以及有了罗比之后的生活，就像是呼吸纯净、新鲜的空气，”她说。
“我是和一个我爱的并且也爱我的人在一起……我们亲密无间。”
不幸的是，他们的婚姻并不长久。
戒毒四年之后，科尔又一次开始吸毒。
1983年，科尔报名参加了一个康复计划，旧日的创伤终于得以愈合。
在又一次死里逃生之后，科尔决心录制她父亲的成功之作，包括红极一时的《难以忘怀——带着爱》。
为了找到自己的幸福，科尔投入并打赢了多次战役，她说：“我很感激生活对我的最终安排。”