Philosophy
Ben Folds Five Lyrics

Won't you look up at the skyline?
Will you please take a moment to appreciate the city skyline?

At the mortar, block, and glass
Look at the man-made structures of the city

And check out the reflections in my eyes
Notice the reflection of the city in the singer's eyes

You see they always used to be there
The city and its reflections have always been there

Even when this was all was grass
Even before the city was built, the potential for it existed

And I sang and danced about a high-rise
Before the high-rise was built, the singer had already dreamed of it

And you were laughing at my helmet hat
You were laughing at the singer's odd headwear

Laughing at my torch
You were laughing at the singer's torch

Well, go ahead, you can laugh all you want
It's okay if you think the singer is ridiculous

I got my philosophy (it keeps my feet on the ground)
The singer has a life philosophy that helps them stay grounded

And I trust it like the ground (ground)
The singer trusts their philosophy as much as the stability of the ground

And that's why my philosophy (my phil')
This is why the singer's philosophy is important to them

It keeps me walking when I'm falling down ('osophy)
Their philosophy helps the singer keep moving forward when things get tough

I see that there is evil
The singer recognizes the existence of evil

And I know that there is good
They also acknowledge the existence of good

Now the in-betweens, I never understood
The singer doesn't understand the gray areas between good and evil

Would you look at me? I'm crazy
The singer acknowledges that they might be seen as crazy

But I get the job done
However, they are still able to accomplish their goals

And I say, go ahead, you can laugh all you want
It's okay if others don't understand the singer

But I got my philosophy (it keeps my feet on the ground)
Their philosophy keeps them grounded even if others ridicule them

And I trust it like the ground (ground)
The singer places as much trust in their philosophy as in the stability of the ground beneath their feet

And that's why my philosophy (my phil')
This is why their philosophy is so important to them

It keeps me walking when I'm falling down ('osophy)
Even when everything feels like it's falling apart, their philosophy helps them keep moving forward

I pushed you 'cause I loved you guys
The singer's actions were motivated by love

I didn't realize
However, they weren't aware

You weren't having fun
That their friends were not enjoying themselves

And I dragged you up the stairs
The singer pulled their friends along

And I told you to fly
The singer encouraged their friends to take a leap of faith

You were flapping your arms
Their friends tried to fly but failed

You started to cry, you were too high
Their friends were overwhelmed and started to cry

No, too high
They were trying to achieve something that was out of their reach

You may take this all for granted
People often take the things around them for granted

You take the mortar, block, and glass
People focus on the man-made elements of their surroundings

And you forget the speech that moved the stone
They forget about the human effort and creativity that made those elements possible

But it's really not that you can't see
It's not about not being able to see

The forest from the trees
It's about not being able to see the bigger picture

You never been out in the woods alone
They have never truly experienced nature

So you can laugh all you want to
It's okay if others don't understand

But I got my philosophy (it keeps my feet on the ground)
Their philosophy helps them remain grounded even if others mock them

And I love you, you're my friend (friend)
The singer cares about their friends

But you got no philosophy (my phil')
Their friends don't have a philosophy that helps them in the same way

And now it's time for the song to end ('osophy)
The song has come to a close, but their philosophy remains important to them