At the center of the world
There is a statue of a girl
She is standing near a well
With a bucket bare and dry

I went and looked her in the eyes
And she turned me into sand
This clumsy form that I despise
It scattered easy in her hand

And it came to rest upon a beach
With a million others there
We sat and waited for the sea
To stretch out so that we could disappear

Into the endlessness of blue
Into the horror of the truth
You see, we are far less than we knew
Yeah, we are far less than we knew

But we knew what we could taste
Girls found honey to drench our hands
The men cut marble to mark our graves
Said we'll need something to remind us

Of all the sweetness that has passed through us
(Fresh sangria and lemon tea)
The priests dressed children for a choir
(White-robed small voices praise Him)

But found no joy in what was sung
The funeral had begun in the middle of the day
When you drive home to your place
From that job that makes you sleep

Back to the thoughts that keep you awake
Long after night has come to claim
Any light that still remains
In the corner of the frame
That you put around her face

Two pills just weren't enough
The alarm clock is going off but you are not waking up
This isn't happening, happening happening
Happening, happening
It is


Lyrics submitted by PLANES, edited by X321CA, ghostyyy

The Center of the World Lyrics as written by Conor Oberst

Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC

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The Center of the World song meanings
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  • +1
    My Interpretation

    I understand the song as, He fell deeply in love with a girl; who he refers to as a statue which i find interesting as the female body throughout time has been sculpted and painted as it is considered one of the beauties of nature. but anyway. she has such power over him with her beauty she can leave him helpless with just one look 'turning to sand' the sorrow in the tone of the lyrics tells me it didn't end well. and reference to him being 'one of million' is perhaps an analogy of past conquests she has left feeling the same or more likely the worlds unloved, those left broken hearted; all feeling hopeless hoping to be washed away into the calm of closure. I intemperate the 'we are are less than we know' to be the mass of people he finds him self with finding the closure perhaps not fully but at least realizing that in the grand scheme of things their lost love and pain is a minute problem and doesn't matter. The Girls and honey thing i think is just saying how women; to him bring the sweetness to his life and haven't really gotta clue about the men and vicars but again i think the remembering the good times bit is literally that, don't dwell on the bad parts just reflect on the memories that make you smile. I think he begins writing as though it were to the others he was left washed up on the beach with or maybe to the woman ..... probably completely wrong but meh. doesn't matter ^-^

    Brightonon November 19, 2011   Link

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