The Difficult Kind (Live from Central Park, NYC, 09/14/99)

Song Meaning

The lyrics paint a picture of regret and a plea for understanding after a relationship's demise. The narrator acknowledges past wrongs, admitting, "I think I was wrong," and recalling a partner's hurt plea, "Oh honey, won't you stop / Treatin' me that way?" This sets a tone of introspection and a desire to mend fences, or at least to be seen differently by the person they wronged. The central tension lies in the narrator's transformation through love versus the other person's perception. The chorus repeatedly asks, "If you could only see / What love has made of me," suggesting a profound internal change. Yet, the repeated refrain, "But you won't see," underscores the painful realization that this transformation may go unnoticed or unacknowledged by the very person whose opinion matters most. This creates a poignant contrast between the narrator's internal reality and the other's lingering, perhaps outdated, view. The imagery of crossing "the canyon a thousand times" without noticing "what was mine" is particularly striking. It suggests a period of blindness or distraction, where the narrator overlooked valuable aspects of their life or relationship. This metaphor powerfully conveys a sense of missed opportunities and a belated recognition of what truly mattered. The repeated line, "It almost makes me cry," amplifies the emotional weight of this realization. Ultimately, the effectiveness of these lyrics stems from their raw honesty and the subtle unraveling of a complex emotional state. The interplay between the two vocalists, particularly the shift in the final chorus where the narrator asserts, "But I'll no longer be in your mind / The difficult kind," signifies a hard-won self-acceptance. Even if the other person doesn't see the change, the narrator has found a way to move forward, no longer defined by the past or the other's judgment.