The Delgados

Knowing When To Run

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Knowing When To Run Lyrics

A boy that's so scared lying under the stairs, begs for mercy from all of his tortuous days.
He put out a prayer lying under the stairs but I'm sorry to tell you it's over my friend.

Now that you stand in the calm of the landing, a child at your feet nothing left in your soul, what was the point that you could not go back, when your foot hit his face, when your fist broke his back ?

Oh our lives in the slurry.
Mamma's here so don't worry.
Who was there when you walked out the door ?
Bloody bundle picked up from the floor.
It's ours.

Back from the country on business today, a boy and a problem are buried away.
The things that some can, oh the things that some can't, Mother picks up his hair, washed his blood off the lamp.

Oh our lives in the slurry.
Mamma's here so don't worry.
Who was there when you walked out the door ?
Bloody bundle picked up from the floor.
It's ours.
It's our time.

How can he show how he will grow.
You're not gonna know.

Submitted by

let It Fall On Jun 06, 2002

The Light Before We Land

Child Killers

American Trilogy

No Danger

Coming in from the cold

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let it fall

Submitter

2002-06-06 11:37:35

1 Meaning

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Cover art for Knowing When To Run lyrics by Delgados, The

by Amoriko

15y ago

It is obvious that this song about child abuse as shown from the point of view of the artist and some instances the abused child. You can tell from the first stanza that the child is being abuse and prays everyday for help but it is foreshadowed that the child will die by the statement "I'm sorry to tell you it's over my friend". The second stanza can act as both a glimpse of the child's daily torture and the child's last moments. "Now that you stand in the calm of the landing, a child at your feet nothing left in your soul" shows that his attack has calmed down and has taken out all of his rage on the boy he sees that what he has done, and has no remorse, nothing in his "soul". The third stanza and chorus serves to show that the family is struggling probably financially "our lives in the slurry" and also shows how the child's mother truly loves her child but knows she cannot help her son. All she can do is clean up after her husband. The question "Who was there when you walked out the door ?" is the child asking who was there to witness his abuse, did no one see his death, or did no one care. The fourth stanza is one of the most heart wrenching to me. It describes how the mother has cleans up the evidence of her son's death and how she struggles with herself, "The things that some can, oh the things that some can't, Mother picks up his hair, washed his blood off the lamp". I believe that the couplet at the end serves as the boy pondering how will his father cover up his death "How can he show how he will grow. You're not gonna know", because his mother will not even know how he would have grown.

This song serves as a voice for all those who survived and couldn't survive childhood abuse. If you like any aspect of this song please do your part, spread the word and stop child abuse, no all abuse. http://www.childhelp.org/

My Interpretation

It is obvious that this song about child abuse as shown from the point of view of the artist and some instances the abused child.  You can tell from the first stanza that the child is being abuse and prays everyday for help but it is foreshadowed that the child will die by the statement "I'm sorry to tell you it's over my friend". 
The second stanza can act as both a glimpse of the child's daily torture and the child's last moments. "Now that you stand in the calm of the landing, a child at your feet nothing left in your soul" shows that his attack has calmed down and has taken out all of his rage on the boy he sees that what he has done, and has no remorse, nothing in his "soul".
The third stanza and chorus serves to show that the family is struggling probably financially "our lives in the slurry" and also shows how the child's mother truly loves her child but knows she cannot help her son. All she can do is clean up after her husband. The question "Who was there when you walked out the door ?" is the child asking who was there to witness his abuse, did no one see his death, or did no one care.
The fourth stanza is one of the most heart wrenching to me. It describes how the mother has cleans up the evidence of her son's death and how she struggles with herself, "The things that some can, oh the things that some can't, Mother picks up his hair, washed his blood off the lamp". 
I believe that the couplet at the end serves as the boy pondering how will his father cover up his death "How can he show how he will grow. You're not gonna know", because his mother will not even know how he would have grown.

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