This song tells a story of the realization of a man getting older and the unwanted move to the next step of getting married.
"With every sun that sets I am feeling more
Like a stranger on a foreign shore
With an eroding beach disappearing from underneath"
As time passes, the beach (youth) that he knows and loves is disappearing gradually beyond his control.
"And when my mirror speaks it never minces words
Because these eyes don't shine half as bright
As they used to do and they haven't for quite a while"
His true older age is validated by looking into a mirror. He realizes that he isn't as young as he used to be.
"Because I'm a man who hides from all that binds
And a mess of fading lines
And there's a tangled thread inside my head
With nothing on either end"
He's running from anything that binds or the commit of marriage. "a mess of fading lines, tangled thread" refers to his unwillingness to "tie the knot". Nothing on either end means there is no want to tie that knot.
"I always fall in love with an open door
With a horizon on an endless sea
As I look around the ones who were standing right in front of me"
He always takes any opportunity to run from commitment, he sees it as endless possibilities. But he realizes he would be hurting the ones around him if he left.
"And then my mirror speaks with irreverence
Like a soldier I can't command
It sees a child in the body of a full-grown man"
The mirror shows him that he can't do this for much longer. He feels young in heart but the mirror shows that this isn't true.
This song tells a story of the realization of a man getting older and the unwanted move to the next step of getting married.
"With every sun that sets I am feeling more Like a stranger on a foreign shore With an eroding beach disappearing from underneath"
As time passes, the beach (youth) that he knows and loves is disappearing gradually beyond his control.
"And when my mirror speaks it never minces words Because these eyes don't shine half as bright As they used to do and they haven't for quite a while"
His true older age is validated by looking into a mirror. He realizes that he isn't as young as he used to be.
"Because I'm a man who hides from all that binds And a mess of fading lines And there's a tangled thread inside my head With nothing on either end"
He's running from anything that binds or the commit of marriage. "a mess of fading lines, tangled thread" refers to his unwillingness to "tie the knot". Nothing on either end means there is no want to tie that knot.
"I always fall in love with an open door With a horizon on an endless sea As I look around the ones who were standing right in front of me"
He always takes any opportunity to run from commitment, he sees it as endless possibilities. But he realizes he would be hurting the ones around him if he left.
"And then my mirror speaks with irreverence Like a soldier I can't command It sees a child in the body of a full-grown man"
The mirror shows him that he can't do this for much longer. He feels young in heart but the mirror shows that this isn't true.
A beautiful song with such deep undertones.