What do these lyrics mean??

[jshanks3]

Jars of Clay - Tea and Sympathy (from album: Much Afraid)

Fare thee well
Trade in all our words for tea and sympathy
Wonder why we tried, for things that could never be
Play our hearts lament, like an unrehearsed symphony

Not intend
To leave this castle full of empty rooms
Our love the captive in the tower never rescued
And all the victory songs
Seem to be playing out of tune

But it's not the way
That it has to be
Don't trade our love for tea and sympathy
'Cause it's not the way
That it has to be

You begin
And all your words fall to the floor and break like china cups
And the waitress grabs a broom and tries to sweep them up
I reach for my tea and slowly drink in

Chorus:

'Cause it's not the way
That it has to be
Don't trade our love for tea and sympathy
'Cause it's not the way
That it has to be
Don't trade our love for tea and sympathy

So fare thee well
Words the bag of leaves that fill my head
I could taste the bitterness and call the waitress instead
She holds the answer, smiles and asks one teaspoon or two

[Chorus x 2]

Don't trade us for tea and sympathy
Don't trade us for tea and Sympathy
We can work it out
Don't trade us for tea and Sympathy
Don't trade us for tea and Sympathy
We can work it out
Don't trade us for tea and Sympathy
We can work it out

I have my own theories, just curious what other people think.

 

[swingnscream]

my "theory" is, it's about settling for less when you could really have something better. example: settling for what the world has to offer even though it's not really what you want, instead of taking what Christ has to offer which is more than you could ever dream.

 

[jshanks3]

so do you also see the 'waitress' as the world offering us whatever we 'want'

 

[Hope Wood]

I think I agree. However when I first heard this song, I took it to be about a marriage between an earthly man and woman. Tea and sympothy could be an inapropriate relationship outside there marriage... If you take THAT as we do Pauls bibical words on marriage, then we see the man as Jesus (the brides groom) and the implied girl as us (male or female, any earthly man). Perhaps commenting on serveing other gods. Keep in mind that anything that comes befroe god in your life is to worship another god, whether that be literal or figurtive. You might worship Nascar, material things, an addiction to something: alcohol, drugs, porn... even such things that are not considered sin usually- afore mentioned Nascar, your body, you may worship the gym.

 

[bleechers]

If this helps any, there is a classic film from 1956 called Tea and Sympathy.

From IMDB:

Tom Lee is a sensitive boy of 17 whose lack of interest in the "manly" pursuits of sports, mountain climbing and girls labels him "sister-boy" at the college he is attending. Head master Bill Reynold's wife Laura sees Tom's suffering at the hands of his school mates (and her husband), and tries to help him find himself.

===

Tom Lee (John Kerr) is an outcast at his boarding school. He stays away from the other guys, hates sports, loves poetry, knows how to sew and gardening, walks funny and wants to be a--GASP--folk singer!!! The other boys torment him and call him "Sister Boy Lee". His roommate Al (Darryl Hickman) tries to help but it doesn't work. Kind, beautiful Laura Reynolds (Deborah Kerr) wife of the sports coach reaches out to him and "cures" him of his shyness. It seems he isn't gay--just shy and sensitive and needs love to have sex--which he gets from Kerr.