Once Upon a Time

Song Meaning

The lyrics open with a disorienting sense of unreality, a feeling that the narrator has woken up still caught in a dream or a fairytale. This isn't a pleasant, whimsical dream, though; it's a state where everything previously believed to have meaning now feels hollow, just the "feeling of a dream." The narrator grapples with a lost sense of freedom, questioning where it went and repeating the phrase "once upon a time" like a mantra for a lost past. The central tension emerges as the narrator confronts the realization that their entire "reality was the dream of my life." This suggests a profound disconnect between their lived experience and their perception of it. The line "The daydream was real" implies that the illusion was so potent it felt tangible, something "nothing to conceal." This period, framed by "once upon a time," was characterized by a refusal to see the truth, symbolized by "rose-coloured glasses." The turning point arrives with the painful admission: "The dream was not true / 'cause I was in love with you." This reveals the source of the delusion – a romantic infatuation that colored the narrator's perception of reality. The lyrics then pivot to a necessary, albeit difficult, decision: "I have to reactivate my whole life." This implies a conscious effort to break free from the lingering effects of this past love, even if it means enduring emotional pain, described as "intimacy will be bleeding." What makes these lyrics resonate is the raw depiction of disillusionment and the arduous process of reclaiming one's life. The repetition of "my only love" at the end, while seemingly a lament, also functions as a final anchor to the past that must be acknowledged before it can be truly left behind. The struggle to "reactivate" suggests that shedding a deeply ingrained, love-fueled illusion is not a simple act but a demanding, ongoing commitment to a new, more authentic reality.