In my opinion, this song is about how time may change somebody’s characteristics, but it will never change things such as who they truly are, the fact that they love each other, and that God’s plan remains the same no matter what happens.
“The more you see the less you know
The less you find out as you go
I knew much more then, than I do now”
These lyrics seem to talk about how time has changed Bono, as he says in the bridge: “Time won’t leave me as I am”. The things Bono is seeing now is changing his beliefs, and he doesn’t think that what he knew in the past is relevant, hence the line “I knew much more then, than I do now”. Bono can also be leaving some parts of his childhood behind, and is entering a new chapter in his life. So as he gets older, the child in him is leaving. However, he knows it will never fully leave (“Time won’t take the boy out of this man”).
“Neon heart, day-glo eyes
The city lit by fireflies
They’re advertising in the skies for people like us”
When Bono says “people like us”, he doesn’t mean him and his wife, Ali Hewson. He is referring to anyone who is in the city (New York) because it has “advertised” them with its beauty (“Oh you look so beautiful tonight”). This city is a part of Bono, and although it has changed him, it’s also allowed him to find who he is by guiding him with light. Bono could also mean that Ali’s love is what gets Bono through the night
In my opinion, this song is about how time may change somebody’s characteristics, but it will never change things such as who they truly are, the fact that they love each other, and that God’s plan remains the same no matter what happens.
“The more you see the less you know The less you find out as you go I knew much more then, than I do now”
These lyrics seem to talk about how time has changed Bono, as he says in the bridge: “Time won’t leave me as I am”. The things Bono is seeing now is changing his beliefs, and he doesn’t think that what he knew in the past is relevant, hence the line “I knew much more then, than I do now”. Bono can also be leaving some parts of his childhood behind, and is entering a new chapter in his life. So as he gets older, the child in him is leaving. However, he knows it will never fully leave (“Time won’t take the boy out of this man”).
“Neon heart, day-glo eyes The city lit by fireflies They’re advertising in the skies for people like us”
When Bono says “people like us”, he doesn’t mean him and his wife, Ali Hewson. He is referring to anyone who is in the city (New York) because it has “advertised” them with its beauty (“Oh you look so beautiful tonight”). This city is a part of Bono, and although it has changed him, it’s also allowed him to find who he is by guiding him with light. Bono could also mean that Ali’s love is what gets Bono through the night