Ted Gärdestad – Skolsång (English Translation) Lyrics

[Verse 1]
Why does the day stretch on so slow?
Why does everything feel so forced and low?
Mmm — why is school so painfully dull?
Woah — I want to be a poet,
I want to be a prophet,
I want to be a man —
yes, I want to, and I can.

[Verse 2]
I shut my eyes and count the teeth of my comb,
figuring out how long until I finally get to go home.
I wonder what I’ll do when summer breaks free —
when school is done and all the jobs have left me.

[Bridge]
Will I become the kind who lives off friends,
sunshine, songs, and the choices others make?
Maybe I’ll get a job if I stand on my hands —
that’s the only way I’ll break.

[Chorus]
I can stand upside down —
I can do more than you see.
I can be a man —
yes, I will, if I can.

[Verse 3]
I want to be an artist —
I want to be a comedian —
I want to laugh a little more at school.
Woah — I want to be creative,
I want to paint my life in full —
I want to be a man —
yes, I will, if I can.

[Verse 4]
What is it really worth to do nothing but study,
and live by the theories of her and him?
Everything I learn, I want to put into practice —
but I’m being pulled away from what I wanted to become.

[Bridge]
Will I become the kind who lives off friends,
sunshine, songs, and talks his way to freedom?
Maybe I’ll get a job if I stand on my hands —
I’ll find a way through them.

[Outro]
I can stand upside down —
I can do more than you see.
I can be a man —
yes, I will, if I can.

📖 Lyrics Meaning

This song is a raw, honest reflection of youthful restlessness and the desire to break free from the confines of school, routine, and societal expectations. The speaker dreams of becoming something more — a poet, an artist, a comedian — and questions the value of a system that feels dull and disconnected from real life.

Key themes:

1. Boredom and frustration – School is described as “incredibly boring” and “forced.” The speaker feels trapped in a system that doesn’t inspire them.

2. Dreaming of identity – The repeated line “I want to be a man” is not about gender but about becoming a fully realized, independent person — someone with purpose, creativity, and agency.

3. Counting time – Counting the teeth of a comb is a vivid, almost absurd image of waiting — marking time in tiny, meaningless ways until freedom arrives.

4. Summer as escape – Summer represents a break from the monotony, but even then, jobs may dry up. The future feels uncertain and limited.

5. Living off friends, sunshine, and songs – The bridge imagines an alternative life: one that is free, communal, and artistic. But the speaker is unsure if that life is sustainable or just a dream.

6. Standing on hands – A powerful metaphor for doing something difficult, unconventional, or even absurd to get by. It suggests a willingness to work hard and think differently to survive.

7. Theory vs. practice – The speaker learns theories but wants to apply them. Education feels disconnected from real life. They are being “pulled away” from their true calling.

8. Upside down as perspective – Standing upside down is also a way of seeing the world differently — literally changing your viewpoint. The speaker can do more than others expect.