Old And Wise

Even I, at twenty-one, am choked up by this song. It seems to me (as per my personal interpretation, of course) that he is not yet old and wise, and somewhat torn between contemplations of the finity of life and the pain of youth. The lines referring to the shadows approaching/surrounding him, are [obviously] a metaphor; it is his certainty that is enshadowed. As I'm still young, my future seems to stretch on almost infinitely. However, there will come a time when I am less certain of just how long I have left. What I can identify with personally, are the "bitter words" lines. The affections of certain others in my life are terribly important to me, and their words have the power to turn my world upside down. I can do my best to keep my sanity and my health, but I draw a great deal of my strength, from the future; hoping and telling myself that one day, things won't be so hard; one day I'll have the strength to handle this; one day simple words won't have such power over me. Sadly, this will probably not be the case; expecting to one day be immune to bitter words seems a fallacy; no matter how old or wise, I will always be human; but I can hope.

The main theme is reconciliation/forgiveness. As he is slipping away he wants those around him to let go of their ill feelings towards each other and not take unresolved to their graves. (You follow where I go)

He has forgiven them (Bitter words mean little to me... Autumn Winds will blow right through me) (Heavy words that tossed and blew me... Like Autumn winds that will blow right through me) (When they asked me if I knew you... I'd smile and say you were a friend of mine)

He does hope they can forgive him. (When they ask you if you knew me... Remember that You were a friend of mine)

The tone of the song is remorseful..... wishing he would have resolved this sooner.

It makes you wonder how much fun Eric Woolfson is to be around, doesn't it? The dramatically sad tone of this song is matched by it's soaring orchestration and wistful oboe laying out the basic theme.

Will the realization of our death (those of us who have the time to contemplate it), make us wise enough to say goodbye to everyone we know? Will we be sure to let them know how much we cared? Do we do that now? Maybe we should - you never know - you might not get the chance to live out this song...

I have my own interpretation of this song.

I feel like this song is talking about a person who can his death nearing him far in the future. He is distressed because he lost contact with many of his good friends over time, and he says that they followed him wherever he went.

Then he goes to say "When I'm old and wise" which I translate to - "When I'm ready to die". So, when he's ready to die, he will be immune to words and troubles, almost emotionless. However, "When they ask me if I knew you" - when he feels alone, he remembers his lost friends and smiles, showing emotion, lifting all his sadness away; no longer being sad, when he's ready to die.

Then far in the future, all he can see is his death. And in this gloomy time, he will be missing his lost friends.

And then, when he's ready to die, words that once affecting him greatly will lose all their meaning. And in this sadistic time, his only wish is for his lost friends to remember that they were once friends. Then he can finally surrender himself to death.

This is a truly beautiful song about growing old and dying.

It seems to me, to be about an old man at the end of his life's journey. The key undertone is of fondness/friendship and forgiveness. Beautiful, reminiscent, ironic.

i think we should think like this even when we are younger and will probably have better quality relationships. I have been listening to it for over 20 years intermittently and never fails to move me.

Hello all,

I'm offering below what I think the author(s) of the song meant. I tried not to introduce personal extras, but is that possible anyway ?

• Introduction: why ? / some context about me

The sad side: An ex coworker died last yeas in a plane crash. My wife's mother also died last year. My godfather is dying of multiple cancers. There must be a reason why those events now remind me about this song.

The good side: on top of that I've had troubles with neighbors which are calming down, but all those events actually taught me to enjoy life.

Notice that I'm a fan of The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry. This might have enlightened me or actually biased me, what do you think ? See at the end a link I make between this song and the book "The Little Prince".

• My interpretation about the song, in one sentence.

What's most important in life is friendship+relations.

• My interpretation about the song, detailed

As far as my eyes can see There are Shadows approaching me

The author thinks about death approaching. The author is not necessarily old, thinking about certainty of death may happen at any age.

And to those I left behind I wanted you to Know You've always shared my deepest thoughts / You've always Shared my darkest hours

The author keeps fond memories of friends, has a habit of thinking about them, especially in the most intimate thought (decisions ?) and in difficult times of life.

You follow where I go

Even death will not dissolve relations, they extend between the people still living and the dead ones.

And oh when I'm old and wise

This line may not be about actual age but metaphorical, see below.

Bitter words mean little to me / Heavy words that tossed and blew me

Deeply thinking about death makes us realize how many things that hurt us actually aren't important.

Autumn Winds will blow right through me

A metaphor of death: cold can flow through your body and that's no longer important. More poetically, after you realize what's important and what's not you don't care about things that come and go without important effects, like the wind.

And someday in the mist of time

Not an actual moment in time. The previous lines describe a kind of permanent "frozen" state of the relation, like a museum of the past. Following lines describe the attitude that the author wants people to remember.

When they asked me if I knew you I'd smile and say you were a friend of mine And the sadness would be Lifted from my eyes

This may be the core of the song: when you mentally represent an overview of your entire life, any sadness for any reason eventually disappears, what actually remains important is friends, relatives and the memory of friendship.

Oh when I'm old and wise

May mean that the author is not there yet.

(Then part of the song basically repeats the same except a few lines.)

When they ask you if you knew me Remember that You were a friend of mine

The persons are reversed here: in turn, the listener is invited to think about the author, making the link mutual, two-ways.

As the final curtain falls before my eyes

Another metaphor of death. A curtain traditionally closes ("falls") at the very end of a theater play.

• Back to the Little Prince

Notice that if you put aside the idea of death, the remaining message matches the message from the fox to the Little Prince:

"It is only with the heart that one can see rightly; what is essential is invisible to the eye."

I hope you enjoyed this interpretation. I'd like to know if you agree, disagree, think about some refinement.

Life timespan is limited. Go out, smile to the people, take occasions to live emotional moments with friends and relatives, be honest and true to them, forgive imperfections. Memories of those moments will be kept and shared in your hearts forever.

Cheers!

Here's my version of what this song could mean:

Like many people, I used to think it was about someone on his death bed, saying goodbye to his loved ones.

Now, looking deeper, I think it's about forgivenes, or being unable to forgive at this point, but being hopefull that one day, when he's old and wise, he will be able to say that the person was a friend. And at that moment, the sadness will be lifted from his eyes, as he is finally freed from the bad feelings of holding on to a grudge. In fact, the song can easily be about someone who has been gossiped about so bad that he can no longer stay where he is, and has a hard time dealing with that.

In more detail:

"As far as my eyes can see, there are shadows approaching me" This to me would be the shadow of bad feelings towards someone, or maybe more than one person.

"And to those I left behind, I wanted you to know You've always shared my deepest thoughts, you follow where I go" My interpretation is that he wants them to know that he has always been honest to them, and that he will always keep them in his thoughts.

"And oh, when I'm old and wise, Little words mean little to me, Autumn winds will blow right through me" One day, when he has had the time to heal from what happened, he will be able to look back and not be touched by it all.

"And someday, in the mist of time, When they ask me if I knew you, I'd smile and say you were a friend of mine. And the sadness would be lifted from my eyes. Oh, when I'm old and wise". He will one day be able to talk about it, and just remember that they were his friends, instead of that feeling being clouded by what happened.

"As far as my eyes can see, there are shadows surrounding me" The bad feelings have grown stronger as his goodbye comes closer and more definitive.

"And to those I leave behind, I want all you to know You've always shared my darkest hours, I'll mis you when I go" He tells them again that he was always an open book, even through bad times and that he will miss them.

"And oh, when I'm old and wise Heavy words that tossed and blew me Like Autumn winds that will blow right through me" Actually now talking about how hurt he is at this moment, but also that one day it will not touch him anymore"

"And someday in the mist of time When they ask you if you knew me Remember that you were a friend of mine" A last hope that they will one day remember that he was a friend.

"As the final curtain falls before my eyes Oh when I'm old and wise" Now talking about when he will die, and hoping he will die peacefully, knowing he is forgiven, and that he HAS forgiven.

APP is best known for their synth wizardry, progressive music and lush arrangements. But when it comes to feeling the feels, this song never fails to move me no matter how many times I listen to it. This is my take on the lyrics:

Verse One – A man contemplates death in his final hours. ‘Approaching shadows’, a metaphor for the man’s eventual demise, suggests that his time on this earth is almost up. To those he truly cared about, he wants them to know that they will always remain in his thoughts despite his inevitable passing.

First Chorus – Again, I think “old and wise” is used as a metaphor here for death itself rather than old age and the attainment of wisdom. The subject feels he can finally be free from this bitter world when he retires from this realm. In his passing, he reflects on the friends and loved ones he will miss. Even so, in dying, he knows in his heart that he will no longer be bound to earthly pain and mortal afflictions, and thus, ‘the sadness would be lifted from his eyes’.

Verse Two – Similar lyrics to Verse One, except the words ‘deepest thoughts’ are replaced by ‘darkest hours’. And instead of “you follow where I go”, he says “I’ll miss you when I go”. Likewise, he wants those who stood by him in his darkest times to know that they will not be forgotten, and with a touch of sadness and regret, perhaps, he reminds them that they will be greatly missed as he can’t take them with him.

Final Chorus – The lines, “as the final curtains falls before my eyes, oh when I am old and wise”, are added to the lyrics in the first chorus. This is the final moment when death claims him. The curtain falls, and everything fades to black. As far as his eyes can see, only shadows remain.

In summation, I think this song is pretty much about one’s acceptance of death and that inescapable sense of regret and melancholy that comes with it. The older I get, the more its stanzas appeal to me. It’s a lyrical as well as musical masterpiece.

P.S. I used “he” in my interpretation as a matter of convenience. The song applies to a woman as much as a man.

loves it