Song Meaning
The lyrics paint a vivid picture of a child's dream, starting with simple, sweet imagery of "lashes, lashes and cheeks" and a "smile of good." A little girl closes her eyes, and a dream opens, transitioning into a fantastical, almost surreal landscape. This initial dreamscape is described with rich, evocative colors like "purple" and "blue," featuring a forest and a cabin where someone waits "in vain for the boy to come." This sets up a subtle tension, a hint of unfulfilled longing within the dream's beauty.
The core emotional arc seems to pivot on the contrast between the dream's potential for wonder and the intrusion of harsh reality, or perhaps just the fading of the dream. When "miracles don't happen," there's "sadness in the lashes." This suggests that the dream's magic is tied to expectation and fulfillment. The dream then shifts, with "lashes, lashes closing on blue" and a "green flicker," bringing hope with a "sweet thumb." This imagery feels like a child's comfort, a tangible element grounding the ethereal dream.
The most striking craft element is the introduction of characters from stories – "uniform flies appeared, dwarves from Dad's story" and a "growling bear from Grandpa's story." These figures, along with the refrain "wonders of wonders, miracles, miracles," inject a sense of epic, almost mythic quality into the child's inner world. The repetition of "lashes" acts as an anchor, framing both the sadness and the eventual "happiness in the lashes" as the dream concludes.
Ultimately, the lyrics resonate because they capture the delicate boundary between childhood innocence, the power of imagination, and the inevitable return to wakefulness. The final stanza, where the girl "opened her eyes" and the "dream closed," signifies the end of this magical interlude. Yet, the "legend of a child's lashes" remains, open to the sun, suggesting that the essence of the dream, the wonder, leaves a lasting imprint even after it has passed.