In regards to the meaning of this song:
Before a live performance on the EP Five Stories Falling, Geoff states “It’s about the last time I went to visit my grandmother in Columbus, and I saw that she was dying and it was the last time I was going to see her. It is about realizing how young you are, but how quickly you can go.”
That’s the thing about Geoff and his sublime poetry, you think it’s about one thing, but really it’s about something entirely different. But the lyrics are still universal and omnipresent, ubiquitous, even. So relatable. That’s one thing I love about this band. I also love their live performances, raw energy and Geoff’s beautiful, imperfectly perfect vocals. His voice soothes my aching soul.
Maybe you'll find some peace of mind which is more than what I have
We say something is wrong and it is/ But I don't know the secrets
how to live either
Maybe you'll run away/ Maybe we'll run away from how we've been
feeling/ Maybe to us you'll cease to speak/ We'll be unable to keep
memory of you burning
I knew you when/ I knew you when I wanted to be like you
When your power, it was too much/ You could too easily walk across
the barriers, through the dwellings/ You wondered why it was because
as a child you were so able
You could organize the people/ So it came as no surprise that you
had the first and the most girlfriends/ You were our emcee of life
So it came as no surprise that you were an old man by twenty-one
I knew you when/ I knew you when I wanted to be like you
When doing well versus not doing well/ We'd say "whatever
that means"/ Doing well versus not doing well/ We'd say "whatever
that means"
I show the disgust on my face/ You try to please me in haste/ To
stop all of this family's bleeding/ Our mother, she tries to translate
She says it looks like hate/ But you kids are just heartbroken
I know it was hollow here/ All the achievement and the cheer that
left you feeling empty/ You wondered why it was because as a child
you were so able
I knew you when/ I knew you when I wanted to be like you
Maybe you'll find some peace of mind which is more than what I have
We say something is wrong and it is/ But I don't know the secrets
how to live either
Maybe you'll run away/ Maybe we'll run away from how we've been
feeling/ Maybe to us you'll cease to speak/ We'll be unable to keep
memory of you burning
I knew you when/ I knew you when I wanted to be like you
When your power, it was too much/ You could too easily walk across
the barriers, through the dwellings/ You wondered why it was because
as a child you were so able
You could organize the people/ So it came as no surprise that you
had the first and the most girlfriends/ You were our emcee of life
So it came as no surprise that you were an old man by twenty-one
I knew you when/ I knew you when I wanted to be like you
When doing well versus not doing well/ We'd say "whatever
that means"/ Doing well versus not doing well/ We'd say "whatever
that means"
I show the disgust on my face/ You try to please me in haste/ To
stop all of this family's bleeding/ Our mother, she tries to translate
She says it looks like hate/ But you kids are just heartbroken
I know it was hollow here/ All the achievement and the cheer that
left you feeling empty/ You wondered why it was because as a child
you were so able
I knew you when/ I knew you when I wanted to be like you
Maybe you'll find some peace of mind which is more than what I have
Lyrics submitted by Blaupunked
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