In today's world of instant visual gratification enabled by the internet, the concept of meeting someone and then not seeing their face again until the next time you're with them must be difficult to imagine for the younger generations... but that's how it was in the 1990s. Being in a long distance relationship meant a lot of lengthy phone calls and dreams of someday, when you'd see each other again.
Cell phones weren't a thing yet. While an early version did exist then, very few people owned them, and they certainly weren't capable of texting, snapping pictures or taking video. In 1995, most people didn't even have the capability to access the internet, let alone have an email address. The only way you were staying in touch was by phone, writing letters via snail mail, or seeing them in-person.
Though it may be difficult to imagine having voice calls as your only option for real-time conversation with someone who isn't in the same room, it's not difficult to imagine feeling that distance of not having that person close by.
Listen as the wind blows from across the great divide Voices trapped in yearning, memories trapped in time The night is my companion, and solitude my guide Would I spend forever here and not be satisfied?
Similar to Chapter 1, there has never been a different choice for Chapter 5. This song perfectly captures a sense of deep yearning that's evenly tempered with fears of vulnerability/rejection. What I love most about this song is it's impossible to discern whether the object of the singer's affection is even aware of how she feels.
Is this a newly-established long distance relationship, still rife with all the uncertainty and fears of revealing too much, too soon about the depths of your feelings, or is it a crush that may very well be one-sided? Where she promises to "wipe away the tears" after kissing him, are those tears of joy (an established, but restrained relationship), or does that denote her perception that that advance would be unwelcome (unrequited crush)? What you read into those lyrics will be informed by your own experience, and what you want to hear. As is the case with all cryptic lyrics (and situations), you find what you look for.
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