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.
You keep a lot of secrets
And I keep none
Wish I could go back
And keep some
You're fireproof
Nothing breaks your heart
You're fireproof
It's just the way you are
You tell me you're waiting
To find someone
Who isn't so hopeless
There's no one
You're fireproof
Nothing breaks your heart
You're fireproof
How'd you get so far?
You're the needle in the hay
You're the water at the door
You're a million miles away
Doesn't matter anymore
Jennifer, you are not the only reason
My head is boiling and my hands are freezing
Jennifer, you are not the only one
To sit awake until the wild feelings leave you
You're fireproof
Nothing breaks your heart
You're fireproof
It's just the way you are
You're fireproof
It's what you always say
You're fireproof
I wish I was that way
And I keep none
Wish I could go back
And keep some
You're fireproof
Nothing breaks your heart
You're fireproof
It's just the way you are
You tell me you're waiting
To find someone
Who isn't so hopeless
There's no one
You're fireproof
Nothing breaks your heart
You're fireproof
How'd you get so far?
You're the needle in the hay
You're the water at the door
You're a million miles away
Doesn't matter anymore
Jennifer, you are not the only reason
My head is boiling and my hands are freezing
Jennifer, you are not the only one
To sit awake until the wild feelings leave you
You're fireproof
Nothing breaks your heart
You're fireproof
It's just the way you are
You're fireproof
It's what you always say
You're fireproof
I wish I was that way
Lyrics submitted by SongMeanings, edited by Imaji, jahjahjeh, flamebroiledchicken, dcb, nutshell7, Supersheep, vesperlynd7061, delorean21, cecioce89, Taytay41
Fireproof Lyrics as written by Matthew Donald Berninger Aaron Brooking Dessner
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management
Lyrics powered by LyricFind
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Matt Berninger yearns for a hard-shell that would shield and protect him from strong, at times painful feelings and nagging thoughts associated with caring about someone special...
He openly envies the tough, resilient, 'fireproof' nature of the woman who caused him pain and left him with a broken heart. He regrets opening up as much as he did, as he verbalizes with the remorseful "You keep a lot of secrets and I keep none. Wish I could go back and keep some."
"You tell me you’re waiting to find someone who isn’t so hopeless", he utters calmly in an attempt to face the harsh cold truth himself. "There’s no one", he continues, in a sincere disbelief that it can be humanly possible to be immune to the emotional consequences of opening up and letting someone in.
"How’d you get so far?", he asks in a partly rhetorical manner. It might be his belief that possessing that hard-shell and being 'fireproof'' comes naturally with one's emotional evolution.
He tries to rationally get over his still-alive feelings for the one he cannot let go, by affirming and reminding to himself that "You’re a million miles away; it doesn’t matter anymore..."
Self-aware and with his heart on his sleeve, he can see things as they are, but his feelings do not always cooperate.
"Jennifer, you are not the only one to sit awake until the wild feelings leave you", he cries out softly at a climatic point. It is a confident moment of reassurance that he is not alone, and she too must have suffered from feelings, which he tries to relate to...
"I wish I was that way", a sincere wish to be immune to certain feelings is right on point and ends the song on a high note, which the ongoing music carries on until the very end...
@gatinha<br /> <br /> Most of the interpretations here seem adequate, though, I think one important point is missing from them: The songs is sung by the other person to the narrator. It is the narrator who is made out to be fireproof; it ends "You're fireproof, that's what YOU always say" and then "I wish I was that way", suggesting that the idea the woman has of him as fireproof is wrong, though he would like to be since it's causing him pain. This fits with "Jennifer, you are not the only one to sit awake until the wild feelings leave you". She's the one representing the one with the heart on her sleeve in her mind, though, obviously, the narrator himself sits awake until the wild feeling leave you. That's how I see it.
Reminiscent of a past relationship with a girl who he keeps going back to. When they get back together here's her reasoning.
"you tell me you're waiting to find someone, who isn't so hopeless, there's no one"
but later he talks about how she's gone for good, and apparently stronger than him by thinking she's fireproof, and not affected by what happened.
a needle in the hay, eh?
Elliott Smith?
@ancym - precisely my point
This song is so powerful... so aching...
Official lyrics from album sleeve:
You keep a lot of secrets and I keep none. Wish I could go back and keep some.
You're fireproof. Nothing breaks your heart. You're fireproof. It’s just the way you are.
You tell me you’re waiting to find someone who isn’t so hopeless. There’s no one.
You’re fireproof. Nothing breaks your heart. You’re fireproof. How’d you get so far?
You're a needle in the hay. You're the water at the door. You’re a million miles away. It doesn’t matter anymore.
Jennifer, you are not the only reason my head is boiling and my hands are freezing. Jennifer, you are not the only one to sit awake until the wild feelings leave you.
You're fireproof. Nothing breaks your heart You're fireproof. It’s just the way you are. You’re fireproof. It’s what you always say. You’re fireproof. Wish I was that way.
I know it doesn't matter cuz it's not the real words, but I like the first verse on this website than the actual words:<br /> You keep my secrets<br /> And I keep none<br /> Wish I could go back<br /> And keep some<br /> <br /> Instead of<br /> <br /> You keep a lot of secrets<br /> and I keep none.<br /> Wish I could go back<br /> and keep some.<br /> <br /> saying you keep my secrets rather than a lot of secrets i think is more powerful, because he would be saying i told you all my secrets rather than in the real version the secrets he keeps could be referring to just hers and not his. As in in the actual version it sounds more like he was opening up, but she didn't open up.
what's the meaning of- Jennifer, you are not the only reason my head is boiling and my hands are freezing....
Matt Berninger focuses on conveying certain feelings, emotions or moods with his lyrics; not worrying about coherence or meaning. I think this is what makes them so intriguing, genius, subjective, and hard to talk about. Still, I'll give it a shot... <br /> <br /> The music and the lyrics harmoniously lead the song's mixed emotions that involve love, loss, longing, envy, desire, disappointment, acceptance, anger, etc. through a gentle roller-coaster ride in this song, in my opinion. While the chorus keeps bringing everything back to the same rational level, the verses in-between express the raw, strong emotions. [Also, Matt B. writes the lyrics FOR the music, getting cues from the music, so musical progression usually tells half the story.]<br /> <br /> Those lines you ask about have a cathartic, confrontational and climactic power built upon the sentiment expressed in the previous lines: "You´re a million miles away; it doesn't matter anymore..." Shrugging and giving up, on a rational level, while burning on the inside...<br /> <br /> So, he strikes back with: "Jennifer, you are not the only reason; my head is boiling and my hands are freezing," in order to claim his life back, diminishing whatever role she has had in causing the emotional turmoil. "You do not have that much power over me," is what he uses to complement "it doesn't matter anymore." Of course it does matter, but he takes a stand: Baby steps in getting that fireproof hard shell...
@thisnametaken Matt Berninger has obviously spent some time in Britain, he knows the vernacular. Go and boil your head, is a Scottish phrase that means "Fuck off!"<br /> Also the juxtaposition of his head at boiling point of water, and his hands at the freezeing point of water is a metaphor of how it feels when you are mentally discombobulated, frustrated, perhaps angry, and your hands are so cold you can't do anything with them. So kind of having too many emotions all at once, and not knowing what to do, or knowing there is nothing you can do.<br /> <br /> In addition the lyric "you tell me you're waiting for someone who isn't so hopeless" That's also a British phrase meant to disparage someone He is so hopeless means he is incapable, he's clueless.
My personal interpretation is about being with someone that definitely is a hard shell. I can relate to this, being with someone who doesn't openly show vulnerable emotions. The part about "nothing breaks your heart" really stands out to me. The other person heavily guarding themselves. Also, in the beginning, "you keep my secrets and I keep none", the regret of opening yourself up to someone that doesn't open up to you. I really appreciate the National, great music.
To add to your point- I don't think the person referred to is actually 'fire-proof'. The lines "That’s what you always say" and "Jennifer you are not the only one to sit awake until the wild feelings leave" could suggest that he knows it is just an act.
Having just ended a 3+ year relationship with a heroin addict, my interpretation is likely skewed, but this song sounds like that person to me.. Always secretive, and manipulative in a way that makes you wish you were less open with them.
How'd you get so far? Either far gone, or how have you lasted this long? Needle in the hay seems like an Elliot smith reference.. The water at the door is the constant threat of the lifestyle.. A million miles away is how they are most of the time.
To me, the song sounds like a person trying to deal with another's addiction. "Wish I was that way" isn't to wish for the addiction, but to wish for their detachment because it's a lot easier than caring for/carrying them.