Love of mine when you're born I tell myself that you'll never die
And I throw my arms around the girl who finds you
'Cause the world is rosier, through your eyes

I don't suppose you caught her name
Never mind I'll just name her after you, love of mine
I'll fashion her into a sweet long legged icon making all praise holier
Satisfied

Oh, but she gave us to each other
The only thing she's done for me that you could never do
For that she'll always be remembered
After she discovers I don't love her half as much as you

Love of mine when she goes why can't you stay
Here with me

Love of mine when you die I tell myself that you'll never live
Even as I curse the girl who says she'll find someone worthier of the gift
Someone who wants to share it with her
Far away from those who take you, to have and to hold
Now I'm stuck here trying to not remember
For all these pretty words it wasn't her but love that I adored
It's my love I adored

Love of mine when you're born I tell myself, that you'll never die


Lyrics submitted by haruki, edited by thadcar

Love of Mine Lyrics as written by Sara Watkins Christopher Scott Thile

Lyrics © Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd., Hipgnosis Songs Group

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Love of Mine song meanings
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  • +3
    My Interpretation

    So the love that he's singing to is the feeling of love, personified.

    Love of mine, when you're born I tell myself that you'll never die (When he falls in love, he tells himself that it will last forever.)

    And I throw my arms Around the girl who finds you, (He attaches himself to the girl he falls in love with.)

    'Cause the world is rosier Through your eyes (Because love makes things better.)

    I don't suppose you caught her name? (It doesn't matter who the girl is; the love is what's important.)

    Nevermind; I'll just name her After you, love of mine And fashion her into Your sweet, long-legged icon, (More of the "It doesn't matter who she is" stuff. She's going to fit his idea of what love is.)

    Making our prayers holier (More of "Love makes things better.")

    Satisfied, love, that she gave us to each other— The only thing she's done for me That you could never do (He couldn't love without someone to love, which is where the girl comes in.)

    For it she'll always be remembered After she discovers I don't love her Half as much as you (But ultimately, the girl still isn't that important. Love is.)

    Love of mine, when she goes, Why can't you stay here with me? (When she breaks up with him, he would still like to be in love.)

    Love of mine, when you die I tell myself that you never lived (When she leaves, he tells himself he never really loved her at all.)

    Even as I curse the girl Who says she'll find someone worthier Of the gift— (But he still acknowledges (and hates) her. And she's told him that she'll find someone worthy of her love.)

    Someone who wants to share it with her, Far away from those who take it to have and to hoard (She wants to love someone who will love her back, not just revel in the feeling of love.)

    And now I'm stuck here trying to not remember; For all these pretty words It wasn't her, but love that I adored It's my love I adore

    Love of mine, when you're born I tell myself that you'll never die

    thadcaron February 19, 2014   Link
  • +3
    My Interpretation

    Love of mine, when you're born I tell myself that you'll never die And I throw my arms Around the girl who finds you, 'Cause the world is rosier Through your eyes

    {So, the "love of mine" here is not the girl. Thile is addressing Love itself, personified. Specifically, the feeling of Love that his brain experiences when he is smitten. He says to Love, "I throw my arms around the girl who finds you, Love," and the rest of him climbs on board because the world is rosier through Love's eyes.}

    I don't suppose you caught her name?

    {Clearly, this person isn't someone he's in a relationship with, though. It's a hookup. Something like that. It's someone he really knows nothing about, who turns him on, and conjures Love like a muse, but who he isn't invested in.}

    Never mind; I'll just name her After you, love of mine And fashion her into A sweet, long-legged icon, Making our prayers holier

    {Anyway, who she really is, her name and all, isn't important. Just as in PATCHWORK GIRLFRIEND, she is part of the tapestry of the experience of Love that he's having in his life. He'll just call her Love, too, for the time-being. The idea of her (and she can only be an idea to him, because he knows nothing about her, really) and the memory of the encounter is etched like religious imagery. She is an icon of Love. The encounter was so mind-blowing that it was almost transcendent, religious in intensity.}

    Satisfied, love, that she gave us to each other— The only thing she's done for me That you could never do And for it, she'll always be remembered After she discovers I don't love her Half as much as you

    {But, he tells Love, it's okay that he doesn't really know the girl. Because the girl is the vessel that brought you and I back together, Love. I can't have the chemical experience of being in love without a girl. And the girl finds out the hard way that what Chris loves is the feeling of Love, not her as person.}

    Love of mine, when she goes, Why can't you stay here with me?

    {Why can't the existential high of being with someone last after they go? Why can't Love stay without the girl to conjure it?}

    Love of mine, when you die I tell myself that you never lived Even as I curse the girl Who says she'll find someone worthier Of the gift—

    Someone who wants to share it with her, Far away from those who take it to have and to hoardNow I'm stuck here trying to not remember; For all these pretty words It wasn't her, but love that I adored It's my love I adore

    {Once it becomes clear that I don't really want anything to do with her long-term, she is hurt, and decides to take the gift of herself-- the person, not the icon-- elsewhere. Things are awkward. You go, Love, and I curse her for taking you away. But she's off to look for someone who can love her, rather than just love Love.}

    Love of mine, when you're born I tell myself that you'll never die

    {Oop. Here we go again.}

    hezekiah17on June 08, 2014   Link
  • 0
    General Comment

    He's trying to find ways of forgetting by telling himself that it was love itself not her that he will miss.

    shaw44on April 30, 2015   Link
  • 0
    Song Meaning

    The story of a boy and his love of Religion Where Religion means Community But remember This is not A love story

    Zygonon January 07, 2018   Link

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