Know something about this song or lyrics?
Add it to our wiki.
Goldenrod and the 4H stone
The things I brought you when I found out
You had cancer of the bone
Your father cried on the telephone
And he drove his car into the Navy yard
Just to prove that he was sorry
In the morning, through the window shade
When the light pressed up against your shoulderblade
I could see what you were reading
All the glory that the Lord has made
And the complications you could do without
When I kissed you on the mouth
Tuesday night at the Bible study
We lift our hands and pray over your body
But nothing ever happens
I remember at Michael's house
In the living room when you kissed my neck
And I almost touched your blouse
In the morning at the top of the stairs
When your father found out what we did that night
And you told me you were scared
All the glory when you ran outside
With your shirt tucked in and your shoes untied
And you told me not to follow you
Sunday night when I cleaned the house
I find the card where you wrote it out
With the pictures of your mother
On the floor at the great divide
With my shirt tucked in and my shoes untied
I am crying in the bathroom
In the morning when you finally go
And the nurse runs in with her head hung low
And the cardinal hits the window
In the morning in the winter shade
On the first of March, on the holiday
I thought I saw you breathing
All the glory that the Lord has made
And the complications when I see His face
In the morning in the window
All the glory when He took our place
But He took my shoulders and He shook my face
And He takes and He takes and He takes
The things I brought you when I found out
You had cancer of the bone
Your father cried on the telephone
And he drove his car into the Navy yard
Just to prove that he was sorry
In the morning, through the window shade
When the light pressed up against your shoulderblade
I could see what you were reading
All the glory that the Lord has made
And the complications you could do without
When I kissed you on the mouth
Tuesday night at the Bible study
We lift our hands and pray over your body
But nothing ever happens
I remember at Michael's house
In the living room when you kissed my neck
And I almost touched your blouse
In the morning at the top of the stairs
When your father found out what we did that night
And you told me you were scared
All the glory when you ran outside
With your shirt tucked in and your shoes untied
And you told me not to follow you
Sunday night when I cleaned the house
I find the card where you wrote it out
With the pictures of your mother
On the floor at the great divide
With my shirt tucked in and my shoes untied
I am crying in the bathroom
In the morning when you finally go
And the nurse runs in with her head hung low
And the cardinal hits the window
In the morning in the winter shade
On the first of March, on the holiday
I thought I saw you breathing
All the glory that the Lord has made
And the complications when I see His face
In the morning in the window
All the glory when He took our place
But He took my shoulders and He shook my face
And He takes and He takes and He takes
Lyrics submitted by downhillracer, edited by Stockholm
Track duration: 05:53
Add your thoughts
Log in now to tell us what you think this song means.
Don’t have an account? Create an account with SongMeanings to post comments, submit lyrics, and more. It’s super easy, we promise!
I take it like this, just a few lines earlier he says
"All the glory when He took our place"
clearly this is a biblical reference to Christ dying on the cross for our sins.
To me, this is more that God is taking his away Sufjan's pain. He took his shoulders and shook his face. He is taking that burden and grief OFF of his shoulders, because that's what God does. He lifts your burdens and softens your heart. I never took it negatively, but rather positively. I could be in the minority with this one though.
The singer doesn't understand why he gives us all this beauty just to take it away from us some times.
I found the card where you wrote it out
With the pictures of you mother" The daughter is on her deathbed, why wouldn't her mother be there? Looking back at the second line got to me though.
" Your father cried on the telephone
And he drove his car into the Navy yard
Just to prove that he was sorry"
This song is not written in chronological order and I believe that the father drove his car off a bridge and into water, killing himself.
Two of my favourite elements: the contrast between the happy melody and the subject - and the pain in the lyrics. The ending ultimately is happy: despite the pain Sufjan is celebrating his friend's life.
Also: the bit that chokes me up most is the whispered 'and he takes and he takes and he takes'. Sufjan is expressing his doubts here: his faith is shaken - sometimes it seems to him that God just takes.
My favourite thing about all of Sufjan's songs is the humanity in them. Really beautiful.
I was a teenager and this was my first experience with death. At that age, youre easily confused. I couldnt understand why she had to die. Experiences like this always cause doubt. Because we dont cope well with the idea of evil in this world. Then you doubt the existence of God and His intentions.. actually everything. But thats good. One of the foundations of faith is the lack of it - the disbelief. Its very important. Firm belief is a bit unreal. That leads to religious fanaticism. Doubt is inseperable from Christianity. With every figure in the bible you find doubt - Abraham, Moses, all the kings and the apostles. Even Jesus doubted. So isnt it funny how religions - especially Christian institutions in the US - have eliminated all doubt? They dont understand how important it is to doubt. With all its consequences. (Roughly translated from a Dutch interview)