I fear I'm dying from complications
Complications due to things that I've left undone
That all my debts will be left unpaid
Feel like a cripple without a cane
I'm like a jack of all trades
Who's a master of none [ Lyrics from: http://www.lyricsmode.com/lyrics/c/city_and_colour/the_grand_optimist.html ]
Then there's my father
He's always looking on the bright side
Saying things like "Son, life just ain't that hard."
He is the grand optimist
I am the world's poor pessimist
You give him burdensome times
And he will escape unscarred
I guess I take after my mother
I used to be quite resilient
Gain no strength from counting the beads on a rosary
Now the wound has begun to turn
Another lesson that has gone unlearned
But this is not a cry for pity or for sympathy
The yin and the yang perhaps? I like the words to the song, lots of meaning to the way many of us live our lives!
by Unregistered on May 25th 2012 5:42 pm
The grand optimist is the overwhelming feelings of stress we face in everyday scenarios, and the father, who is the metaphor for positivity, is our obvious sense of contrast. The pessimist and the optimist, are good balance for the song, because without positivity surrounding us, we may never be able to see anything but our familiar darkness. This is what i believe the song means and relates to.
by Unregistered on Apr 24th 2012 9:55 pm
The father is usually there to instill positive thoughts and general direction in a child's life.. It is only the mother that often has to grease the everyday turning wheels to keep life on track. Demonstrate father the way it's supposed to work out and give props to the one who picks up after you.
by Unregistered on Mar 31st 2012 9:35 pm
A guy who has all these downs in his life and his life is bad and his troubles make him depressed. His dad is a bright guy who looks at positives and his mother has negatives and depressing things in her life so he takes after her because his dad only looks at positives which he does the opposite
by Unregistered on Mar 20th 2012 3:47 pm
Ahmen! That comment was brutal... This song is amazzzing
by Unregistered on Mar 17th 2012 5:12 pm
Honestly, i just find this song very dull. The sound is boring, his voice is boring. I just can't get into it.
by Unregistered on Mar 15th 2012 8:53 pm
I think that this song is about a guy that was greatly effected by his dad. The dad is an optimist, he doesnt see anything difficult in life. Yet, dallas makes a point of saying i guess i take after my mother. The mother is probably a pessimist and sees how life truly is because of hat the dad made her feel. To me the entire title of the song is sarcasm. The grand optimist. Maybe that he escapes unscarred is because he escapes period. Life isnt about escaping, its about facing and learning. Maybe his dad just escaped. And now he is the after math of those actions. He doesnt believe in himself or what hes doing, hes losing faith.
by Unregistered on Feb 21st 2012 4:47 pm
Awesome awesome awesome cith and colour is awesome
by Unregistered on Feb 2nd 2012 4:25 pm
Absolutely brilliant, haunting lyrics and melody. He's older, his resilience has fled. He's had help in the past, but he can't repay them as he's in a bad place, and he feels the pain of life and mortality. His eyes have been opened and he no longer believes in god. It didn't help him at any rate. He hasn't learned anything from life, just started things that he couldn't finish. It's just a statement. He doesn't want anyone to feel bad for him. He's just limping along, trying to get through.
by Unregistered on Jan 30th 2012 7:55 pm
This song means to me: a father who has left without any circumstances. As if it isn't hard. He has left untouched while the rest are left to deal with the consequences. He is like his mother because he feels pain and understands that leaving your problems wouldn't be easy.