Please fall asleep so I can take pictures of you and hang them in my room
so when I wake up feel like yeah everything's alright
You are still here, you are still happy, you are still smiling and laughing
you are still the only thing and everything I need in my life
And it goes in in out through the mouth - breathing exercises
I will never figure out til I am running in circles
or (I am) walking in circles or (I am) crawling in circles or lying on the ground
And I can hear your dog whistle from my bedroom
Yeah yeah
And I can see a flashlight cutting up the trees behind my house
Yeah yeah
Yeah yeah yeah
She's says a lot of the kids we graduated with are now homeless
which puts them in mad shady situations with mad shady people
if not everyday then on an every other day basis
And she's probably with a few of them right now
and they are probably just drinking and talking about
how she misses getting fucked up and hanging around
And he says "Hey you're good at that" and she says "Thanks, it's kind of all I got,"
and then she looks away and says "It's also all I need."
And I can smell plastic burning I can smell chemicals breaking down.
I got your last three e-mails the ones where you said, "I was sorting some things out"
And he will be able to hear her dog whistle from his bedroom
Yeah yeah
And I can see a flashlight cutting up the trees behind my house
Yeah yeah
And I will read the flashing like a morse code explanation
that will mean nothing but take all night to figure out, out, out...
(Please fall asleep so I can take pictures of you and hang them in my room
so when I wake up feel like yeah everything's alright)
when I am sad, I am sad - but when I'm happy, oh god I'm happy
there's just no place in-between for us to meet
(You are still here, you are still happy, you are still smiling and laughing
you are still the only thing and everything I need in my life)
when I am sad, I am sad - but when I'm happy, oh god I am happy
there's just no place in-between for us to meet
(Please fall asleep so I can take pictures of you and hang them in my room
so when I wake up feel like yeah everything is alright)
when I am sad, oh god I'm sad - but when I'm happy, I am happy
there's just no place in-between for us to meet
(You are still here, you are still happy, you are still smiling and laughing
you are still the only thing and everything I need in my life)
when I am sad, oh god I am sad - but when I'm happy, I am happy
and there's just no place in-between for us to meet


Lyrics submitted by joshmurphee, edited by AbuDun

Flashlight song meanings
Add Your Thoughts

9 Comments

sort form View by:
  • +4
    My Interpretation

    I see this as a song about a girl who died. The lyrics "please fall asleep so i can take pictures of you and hang them in my room, so when i wake up it'll be like yea everythings alright, you are still here you are still happy, you are still smiling and laughing, you are still the only thing and everything i need in my life" gives me the hint that he wants to see her pictures and feel like she is still with him, and even though she is gone, she's all he needs in his life. "and i can hear your dog whistle from my bedroom" suggests maybe she owned a dog and he kept it, and can hear the dog crying for her. "she says alot of the kids we graduated with are now homeless, which puts them in mad shady situations with mad shady people,if not everyday then on an every other day basis, and shes probably with a few of them right now and they are probably just drinking and talking about, how she misses gettin fucked up and hangin around" I interpreted this part as she's in heaven with these kids they graduated with who were put in shady situations. And she is reminiscing with them and how she misses life down on earth and "Getting fucked up and hanging around" "and i can smell plastic burning i can smell chemicals breaking down" Maybe she was in a car accident and he can smell the car burning at the scene. "i am sad i am sad but when i am happy oh god im happy, theres just no place in between for us to be" Whenever he gets over the overwhelming sadness that shes gone, he is happy that he has memories of her. The second part says that there is nowhere in between earth and heaven for them to be.

    evanesson June 21, 2012   Link
  • +4
    General Comment

    I take it to be about an ex-girlfriend moving on while he still has feelings for her. He wants to wake up to pictures of her, so he can pretend that they are still together and in a happy relationship.

    Dog whistles are whistles that emit frequencies only audible to dogs. Often, they are used to train dogs. Basically, this line is saying that she still has this unique hold on him, even though he's alone and she's off somewhere else. In addition, he's overanalyzing things (attempting to read flashes of light as morse code messages).

    This mindset leads him to interpret an email she sent in which she says "I was sorting some things out" as her meeting someone new. He imagines (note: "she's probably with a few of them right now" this isn't actually happening) she is developing feelings for a new man ("smell plastic burning, smell chemicals breaking down" chemistry is building between her and the new man) who will be the new person to be under her control ("he will be able to hear her dog whistle").

    I get the feeling that he was the one that broke up with her. When Brian is picturing his ex with the new guy, she seems pretty down herself. Perhaps this is why there is "no place in between for them to meet." When they are together and Brian is happy, he doesn't want her. But when he is sad, he feels he needs her.

    I think this is their best song. Very dancy, with somber yet (at times) humorous lyrics.

    Reasonlesson October 25, 2012   Link
  • +1
    General Comment

    This song makes me feel deeply. I think it is about someone having a hold on you. Being in love with someone who has moved on.

    At the end where he says" when I am sad, oh god I am sad - but when I'm happy, I am happy and there's just no place in-between for us to meet"- I think that this is the mentality of most people. That there are two extremes and often this is troubling and also conveys this somber- passive aggressive attitude.

    katylady89on March 07, 2014   Link
  • 0
    General Comment

    This song is very powerful and meaningful. It interprets the common feelings that one experiences after a breakup. People usually over think this certain situation by believing their ex is surpassing them when they may actually not be. These lyrics depict it so well by expressing the desire for them to still be there ("Please fall asleep so I can take pictures of you and hang them in my room so when I wake up feel like yeah everything's alright") while also explaining that they are broken up for things that they cannot control ("when I am sad, I am sad- but when I'm happy, oh god I am happy there's just no place in-between for us to meet")
    The lyrics are visual and relatable; they are unlike most breakup songs from using comparisons to portraying the honest feelings while having a great sound in the background. Seriously, this song is incredible, words cannot do it justice.

    livingroomon December 27, 2014   Link
  • 0
    General Comment

    He is in duality about wanting to continue the relationship. When he wants to contact her again he is too depressed to do anything about it and when he is happy visa-versa. He wants to call her back but he keeps avoiding this. The homeless is her bad choices in guys and why he doesn't want to follow through on pursuing her. But everything is imagination and over-thinking. It's ASSuming that she is drinking with the losers from school whom are at home with their parents and unemployed and not doing anything productive. A way to convince himself not to contact her and start the relationship over. He must come up with excuses not to see her again. Like a flashlight blinking and he thinks it's a code he needs to decipher when it is not anything special at all. When he knows that he is being pathetic to her and should try to see if things can work out between them (or not) but at least try to see.... Not look for an ideal and accept her warts and all and if it works out so bet and if not so bit. But he is pathetic and will probably stay this way...

    Donny1on May 09, 2016   Link
  • 0
    Song Meaning

    This is about pretentious middle class white kids pretending they aren't playing pop punk and trying too hard

    baby117619on May 24, 2018   Link
  • 0
    General Comment

    He is in duality about wanting to continue the relationship. When he wants to contact her again, he is too depressed to do anything about it and when he is happy visa-versa. He wants to call her back but he keeps avoiding this. The homeless is her bad choices in guys and why he doesn't want to follow through on pursuing her. But it is imagination and over-thinking. It's ASSuming that she is drinking with the losers from school whom are at home with their parents and unemployed and not doing anything productive. A way to convince himself not to contact her and start the relationship over. He must come up with excuses not to see her again. Like a flashlight blinking and he thinks it's a code he needs to decipher when it is not anything special at all. When he knows that he is being pathetic to her and should try to see if things can work out between them (or not) but at least try to see.... Not look for an ideal and accept her warts and all and if it works out so be it and if not so be it. But he is telling himself that he is pathetic and will probably stay this way... The moral is take action and let the chips fall where they will; don't be like him and blow the moment...

    Donny1on May 09, 2016   Link
  • 0
    General Comment

    Guys, she's smoking crack or meth. She is clearly addicted

    "And I can smell plastic burning I can smell chemicals breaking down" That's what it smells like when its burned A pipe looks similar to dog whistle and can also make a high pitched noise when consuming

    "I can see a flashlight cutting up the trees behind my house" Probably in her yard searching for a smoke spot

    "And I will read the flashing like a morse code explanation that will mean nothing but take all night to figure out, out, out" Morse code of the lighter going on and off. Him staying up all night to figure out why she is using

    "or (I am) walking in circles or (I am) crawling in circles or lying on the ground" He might of tried it with her, had a bad high freaking out

    breathing exercises--> smoking

    Like come on, am I the only one who sees that?

    Marshon December 25, 2018   Link
  • -1
    General Comment

    This is a pretty lousy song. The lyrics aren't subtle and there's just too many words for the music, its crammed in too tightly without enough meaning past "I miss you, I'm sad, I'm horny". The vocalist wants to be emotional but there's no soul in his voice, as if he doesn't want to fight and already admitted defeat. Its a song about nostalgia and a longing for things past. Its an overdone concept, and doesn't bring any witty metaphors, just abrasively blunt ones. I hate this song because it is the definition of weak, and when there's a fight to be had it advocates surrender. The only lesson I can take from this song is "don't turn into this loser." This is the first song I've ever heard from this band, however it is quite possibly one of the worst songs I've ever heard in my life.

    klonnyon June 09, 2017   Link

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!

More Featured Meanings

Album art
Light Up The Sky
Van Halen
The song lyrics were written by the band Van Halen, as they were asked to write a song for the 1979 movie "Over the Edge" starring Matt Dillon. The movie (and the lyrics, although more obliquely) are about bored, rebellious youth with nothing better to do than get into trouble. If you see the movie, these lyrics will make more sense. It's a great movie if you grew up in the 70s/80s you'll definitely remember some of these characters from your own life. Fun fact, after writing the song, Van Halen decided not to let the movie use it.
Album art
Bron-Y-Aur Stomp
Led Zeppelin
This is about bronies. They communicate by stomping.
Album art
Son Şansın - Şarkı Sözleri
Hayalperest
This song seemingly tackles the methods of deception those who manipulate others use to get victims to follow their demands, as well as diverting attention away from important issues. They'll also use it as a means to convince people to hate or kill others by pretending acts of terrorism were committed by the enemy when the acts themselves were done by the masters of control to promote discrimination and hate. It also reinforces the idea that these manipulative forces operate in various locations, infiltrating everyday life without detection, and propagate any and everywhere. In general, it highlights the danger of hidden agendas, manipulation, and distraction, serving as a critique of those who exploit chaos and confusion to control and gain power, depicting a cautionary tale against falling into their traps. It encourages us to question the narratives presented to us and remain vigilant against manipulation in various parts of society.
Album art
Dreamwalker
Silent Planet
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.
Album art
I Can't Go To Sleep
Wu-Tang Clan
This song is written as the perspective of the boys in the street, as a whole, and what path they are going to choose as they get older and grow into men. (This is why the music video takes place in an orphanage.) The seen, and unseen collective suffering is imbedded in the boys’ mind, consciously or subconsciously, and is haunting them. Which path will the boys choose? Issac Hayes is the voice of reason, maybe God, the angel on his shoulder, or the voice of his forefathers from beyond the grave who can see the big picture and are pleading with the boys not to continue the violence and pattern of killing their brothers, but to rise above. The most beautiful song and has so many levels. Racism towards African Americans in America would not exist if everyone sat down and listened to this song and understood the history behind the words. The power, fear, pleading in RZA and Ghostface voices are genuine and powerful. Issac Hayes’ strong voice makes the perfect strong father figure, who is possibly from beyond the grave.