I think much like another song “Anti-Matter” (that's also on the same album as this song), this one is also is inspired by a horrifying van crash the band experienced on Nov 3, 2022. This, much like the other track, sounds like it's an extension what they shared while huddled in the wreckage, as they helped frontman Garrett Russell stem the bleeding from his head wound while he was under the temporary effects of a concussion. The track speaks of where the mind goes at the most desperate & desolate of times, when it just about slips away to all but disconnect itself, and the aftermath.
The leaves they fall
Upon the day that makes a memory
Those pleading eyes,
Echoing, silently in me
The final night
I guard her sleep, I can do without
The fear's down deep
There's nothing good in this morning
Oh, and I know
Invested feelings in the one I would outlast
My little friend is getting tired, fading fast
Did not want to see the signs of the dimming flame
I need to have more time
Tonight I fear I'll say goodbye to my little friend
Don't want to let you go
The warmest heart I've found
I lower into the ground
My tears, forever with you
Resting under your tree
You have always loved this place
It now belongs to you
I need to set you free
And go on alone
One day in my feeble time line
You gave me your heart and stole mine
Tomorrows came too fast for me
To hear your slow, silent goodbye
The kindest heart I've found
I lowered into the ground
Your smile kept me alive
Back when the skies were still
You always liked this place
Now sleep under the tree
I planted here the day
When you were born
I should have been ready, seen the nearing end
My little old friend, a child.
That day I had to say goodbye and turn the bend
But I'll never let go
Upon the day that makes a memory
Those pleading eyes,
Echoing, silently in me
The final night
I guard her sleep, I can do without
The fear's down deep
There's nothing good in this morning
Oh, and I know
Invested feelings in the one I would outlast
My little friend is getting tired, fading fast
Did not want to see the signs of the dimming flame
I need to have more time
Tonight I fear I'll say goodbye to my little friend
Don't want to let you go
The warmest heart I've found
I lower into the ground
My tears, forever with you
Resting under your tree
You have always loved this place
It now belongs to you
I need to set you free
And go on alone
One day in my feeble time line
You gave me your heart and stole mine
Tomorrows came too fast for me
To hear your slow, silent goodbye
The kindest heart I've found
I lowered into the ground
Your smile kept me alive
Back when the skies were still
You always liked this place
Now sleep under the tree
I planted here the day
When you were born
I should have been ready, seen the nearing end
My little old friend, a child.
That day I had to say goodbye and turn the bend
But I'll never let go
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This might be the saddest song I've ever heard.
Tony originally wrote this song when his dog was dying and when the dog finally died, he buried him under the tree he planted the day he received the puppy. As he had grown up, he knew that one day he would face the fact he would outlive his pet and decided that when the dog died to bury him under the tree to always remind himself of the good times he had. As it was the dogs favorite tree ("You always liked this place") he is allowing his pup to be happy in the afterlife.
Sad, sad stuff indeed.
Sounds all fitting except for some parts that really don't strike me as doggylike...:<br /> <br /> "your smile kept me alive" and "my little old friend, a child." Dogs aren't usually referred to as a child or as having a smile.. Maybe it really is about a child who he really found a bond with.
Know that I think, animal fit perfect for this... "Oh, and I know... invested feelings in the one I would outlast" I don´t think many thinks they will live longer than their child.
And this fits so good for my feelings right now, I just my buried cat last week :( He was like an child for me...
damn....this song makes me cry....
Me too. I can't listen to this song without crying, so I often skip it, even though I think it's so beautiful. I just miss my dear dog so much, who died last year, and it's so sad to be reminded of it. Tony's right: even though you know your dog's almost certainly going to die before you do, you always think you'll have more time than you do. These bonds give us so much happiness, but it's hard to leave them behind when the time comes. Darn it, my eyes are leaking again!
damn! tony must have really loved that dog, sounds like the picture perfect relation of "mans best friends" pretty sad the song, but its awesome!!
Just beautiful :)
Yes, it's about a dog for Tony, but for you it could be anyone. Take the emotion from it, and get past the dog.
The death of a dog can bring the most beautiful emotions ever to have existed.
This song applies to how I feel right now... My bunny that I got for my 10th birthday (I'm now nearing the age of 19 in October, she will be 9 in August if she makes it) has very deteriorating health and she may not have long... This song makes me so sad...
Shamandalie, is a very clever usage of words that make us people who speak English believe that this must be a Finnish name, however it is just the combination of the words sham and a lie, basically meaning completely fake... that song is still very beautiful, but I'm just letting you know "Shamandalie" does not refer to a person, therefore this song could not be about them =)
Okay, this is the story I see in these lyrics:
It's about a woman that gave birth to a girl and on the same day planted a tree. And she raised her daughter and had a deep relationship to her. And as the years passed, the tree grew taller. The daughter got used to rest under that tree and dream. Her mother did never quit seeing the little child in her daughter.
Then, her daughter got ill and weak. She died of that illness, but her mother could not really deal with that. She wonders how fast time has passed. She buried the urn of her daughter's ashe under the tree that was planted the day she was born.
This song explains the situation when the mother decides to go back to that tree one last time and speak to it in the hope that her words would reach her daughter. Under her daughter's tree she finally wants to let go.