Its a complete metaphor for life in the United States (or really any capitalist society).
We spend the best years of our lives (our youth, when we are strong) chasing the almighty dollar (the "gold" at the top of the mountain)...we spend years "climbing" and waste our energies and youth on this fruitless climb. at the end...what do we have to look back on? Most of us will never ever be rich. the "gold" is not there for us. The song is heartbreaking. But, in the end, the climbers have learned to value things that are not monetary in nature--the grass, the trees, the sun...or to extend the metaphor further, the company of friends and family. I think the song is saying that at the ends of our lives the pursuit of money will not be seen as important as the fulfillment we get from life's other pleasures...
Its a complete metaphor for life in the United States (or really any capitalist society).
We spend the best years of our lives (our youth, when we are strong) chasing the almighty dollar (the "gold" at the top of the mountain)...we spend years "climbing" and waste our energies and youth on this fruitless climb. at the end...what do we have to look back on? Most of us will never ever be rich. the "gold" is not there for us. The song is heartbreaking. But, in the end, the climbers have learned to value things that are not monetary in nature--the grass, the trees, the sun...or to extend the metaphor further, the company of friends and family. I think the song is saying that at the ends of our lives the pursuit of money will not be seen as important as the fulfillment we get from life's other pleasures...