L’appuntamento

Song Meaning

The lyrics paint a vivid picture of anxious anticipation for a rendezvous, tinged with a deep-seated self-doubt. The narrator acknowledges a history of mistakes, admitting, "I've made so many mistakes now I already know / That today I'm almost certainly making a mistake about you." This sets a tone of weary resignation, yet the pull of the appointment is undeniable, described as "Accepting this strange appointment was madness!" The central tension lies in the desperate need for the other person's arrival, a need so profound it equates to existence itself: "If you don't arrive I don't exist, I don't exist, I don't exist." This repetition hammers home the narrator's fragile sense of self, entirely dependent on the presence of the beloved. The scene unfolds with a palpable sense of isolation amidst a bustling environment. The narrator feels "sad among the people passing by," finding solace only in the hope of seeing the other person. The imagery of the sun igniting a "sign of hope" on their face contrasts with the internal turmoil, suggesting a desperate clinging to optimism. However, as time drags on, the external world blurs into a disorienting mess: "Lights, cars, shop windows, streets, everything blends in my mind." The day's slow death mirrors the fading hope, leading to a bleak realization. The most striking element is the escalating sense of non-existence tied to the beloved's absence. The repeated phrase "If you don't arrive I don't exist" transforms from a plea into a final, devastating declaration. By the end, the narrator shifts from begging for forgiveness to a resigned acceptance of this state: "Love, forgive me but I can't resist / Now forever I don't exist." The lyrics suggest that the narrator's entire life, the one they wished to give to the other, has been carelessly destroyed, leaving them with nothing but this profound, existential void.