Comments: 19

• Cris from Italy"Disposition" is the heart of the album, and at the same time an external vision. The text in my opinion concerns two people: one, external, who asks you to show him this transcendental world, and another, which can be you, who responds cryptically the same thing (watch the weather change). After you have followed the first songs, as a listener you have acquired some qualities: a gap is created between those who know this world and those who do not, and the thing necessary to access it is intuition. For this reason, in my opinion "Watch the weather change" has no declared meaning, but expresses the elusiveness of the trascendental world, which cannot be mentioned in words, but only intuited.
• Rs from PhiliFor me, I think this song is a breathing exercise, sort of pre-meditation. Notice the distorted breathing almost sounds like snoring. Try to time a meditative breath to the rhythm of the song song and notice it fits. It invites you to watch the weather change to awaken consciousness. It sets the stage to experience the rest of the album in a deeper level.
• Jeroen from Lisse, NetherlandsTo me this song is part of one big story with four songs in it.
  Most of the Tool listeners know about the fibonacci-sequence in the trackorder. For those who don't know:
  http://members.tripod.com/hunk_o_manwich0/ . This site gives a pretty good illustration of the alternative trackorder.
  If you watch the alternate trackorder you can see it goes like this:
  - disposition
  - the Patient
  - Reflection
  - Triad
  
  My story begins here.
  For me the story begins with Disposition. The lyrics are quite simple. The only lyrics in it are these:
  "mention this to me
  mention something
  mention anything
  mention this to me
  watch the weather change"
  These lyrics give me a sense of... well... frustration or something. Everybody keeps on mentioning everything and keeps having an oppinion but nothing changes. The weather is still changing in a bad direction. This can illustrate the story of his mom. Maynards mother died of a stroke. From own experience I can remember that, in a hospital, a hell of a lot is being said but often the situations gets worse and worse. Almost like these lyrics.
  So let's continue with this thought. Maynard's mom had a stroke and is in the hospital where here situation get's worse and worse.
  The next song follows...
  According the alternative trackorder not reflection but the patient comes next. This song already makes sense by only reading the title. Maynard's mom became a patient in a hospital. If you read the entire lyrics (http://toolshed.down.net/lyrics/lateraluslyrics.php - song 3) you notice somebody that's keeping faith in something and continues waiting patiently. This is basically the same with somebody who had a stroke, is in the hospital and the situation get's worse and worse.
  After this song 'Reflection' follows. This song illustrates to me the ending of a life. It's a reflection of a life that's almost done. Maynard propably descripes his mom almost going to die. The situation is thusfar that nothing can be done 'bout it. Triad is the instrumental end of his moms life.
  
  To me these songs are about the death of his mom, the feeling of remorse and the crucifying feeling that nothing and nobody, most importantly himself, can help her.
  This makes these four songs by far the most beautiful and sad songs of Tool. For any other thoughts or additional information, please reply.
• Syrinna from Dfw, American Samoathe song before (reflection) is about getting rid of your ego so we can all become one mind, survive (2012) ha ha if you have no idea what im saying, go read a book. maynard's writing is not a matter of 'deep' its about how you should be thinking. anyway, the song, once this big impact on the world (as a people) happens - the truly egoless will be at complete and total peace -weather changing-. and they are just going to sit back and observe the mania. the repetitiveness is to make the music beautiful.
• Mike from Lasalle, Onlol I was listening to this song outside on my deck and when Maynard says "watch the weather change" the weather went from sunny to cloudy and started raining later on that day. creepy.
• Bob from Pluto, Afghanistanthis song always reminds me of global warming
• Paul from Santa Cruz, CaI think this is coming from an internal view of what can let us become and what can let us exist. Now I am the man who would have thought of this.
• Artimas from Brattleboro, VtI read somewhere once that this songs' interpretation is not nearly so deep as we make it out to be. Although it appeals to each of us in completely different ways, on many different levels. Personally i find this song very appealing, maynards soothing voice matched with the mellow melodies that float and hauntingly compliment his voice sends chills up and down my spine. I absolutely love this song.
  What I read is that this song is supposed to describe the way that seasoned alcoholics are as unpredictable and dangerous as the weather. You could mention anything, good or bad to one and their reaction could be as destructive as a massive thunderstorm or the sun could peak out from behind the clouds, metaphorically of course.
  Remember interpretations will differ from person to person according with our relation to the song, I find Jeff's interpretation particularly appealing.
  Thanks
• Donna from *megadon City*, United Kingdompat in brookfeil got it just right!
• Bowillis from Murrells Inlet, Scone of the beautiful things about any and all tool songs is that relate to individuals on so many levels.
  
  someone may relate to a song completely different than the way i do but overall the feelings envoked always so close to the same...
  
  sometimes i think i hear maynard speaking of relationships in his lyrics and think that he speaking of himself when he does....maybe in these lyrics he was talking about the problems that he and his fiance were having....
  
  he was asking her to speak up and no to just watch things around them change and do nothing...
  
  often we get so caught up with things around us that we are not aware of the harm/strain/distance we put on our relationships...maybe he was saying...that maybe he wasnt aware of the problem but instead of letting it get out of hand, bring it to his attention so that he could do something before the storm hit...
• Shreyashi Ganguly from Bangalore, India"Watch the weather change" has been used only in its broadest sense... the real connection lies between the line and the title.. change of disposition.
  Maynard almost seems to ask someone to just communicate, really get him, understand.. so that he could show his self... the change of mood, feeling, desires and wishes... as human beings often do.
• Pat from Brookfield, OhI think the very fact that we are discussing the meaning of these three lines is indicative of the songs meaning. We are all trying to find the deeper meaning and reason behind this song, while there may not be one. Yet, we attempt to create one and explain it.
• Ned from Toronto, CanadaThe song just gives such a feeling...I don't know if that has anything to do with what Maynard actually had in mind but when I listen to it I feel like he's begging someone to recognize him, to communicate, hence the "Mention something, mention anything..." lines. It's like "give me something, anything to motivate me and watch me go" in the broadest sense. "Watch the weather change" I think refers to what one is capable of when the rigt words are spoken by the right person. Thanks
• Misterstood from CalgaryHmm the Holy Gift arrangement that I found is 6,7,5,8,4,9,13,1,12,2,11,3,10. It's interesting to hear Diposition as an ending as apposed to the three track megasong that it is on Lateralus.
• Justin from Cleveland, OhThe holy gift... dont know about its significance to life, or a deeper meaning... But the songs to colaberate very nicely when set in this order..
  
  13,1,12,2,11,3,10,4,9,5,8,6,7
• Misterstood from CalgaryNice commentary Jeff. And actually I think kevin might be on to something, except for that fact that Maynard isn't really saying anything. I think he's expressing that so much can be communicated with little being said. After all the song does come after Lateralus and I know that anytime I chase "whatever will bewilder me" and I discover something, I have a hard time trying to explain it or find any place for it in conversation. I don't think the song is lonely at first though. I think it starts off content because of that new discovery of whatever was so bewildering and the talk about weather is people talking about nothing. Like when people actually talk about the weather they aren't talking about anything but they need to fill the space so its not awkward. However because the same tired lyrics get repeated, like the conversation, it does get lonely. I have yet to actually listen to the 'Holy Gift' arangement, so I don't know about all that.
• Kevin from Independence, Mowow jeff that is a lot of words, but did u ever think that the meaning is that there isnt one. That the band came up with the beat and this was all maynard could come up with? I completly disagree about the "holy-gift" arrangement nonesense.
• Don from Philadelphia, PaNice one Jeff. And I agree, the song does have a pretty lonely feeling to it.
• Jeff from Trumbull, CtDue to the limited lyrical content of this song, its meaning (if it has a discernable one) can be, at best, only speculated at. However, nuance is what makes Tool's music so powerful and widely-enjoyed. Personally, I view this song in terms of my own life experiences, as well as how it is positioned.
  First, according to the retail (Lateralus) arrangement, this song occurs after Lateralus and before Reflection. Assuming the songs are meant to be interpreted together as a single album - as opposed to a mere collection of songs - I view this song as describing the post-elation mental state of the mind 'coming down' off of the high of living in the moment that is described in Lateralus and feeling alone again. This feeling of exhausted thoughtfulness is shown in watching and finding beauty in the weather, but desiring someone to share it with. This feeling of loneliness spirals out into downright depression, transitioning (with lonely sighs at the end of the song) into "my darkest moment, fetal and weeping", as described at the beginning of Reflection.
  In this light (and ordering), I view Disposition as the natural emotional transition from happiness to sadness that the bereaved (myself included) typically experience. This may seem strange or paradoxical, but emotion is not as polarized as we are led to believe. Joy and sorrow, love and hatred, destruction and creation are deeply and intrinsically intertwined. This has been a life lesson I've learned and cherished through hardship, and to me this song represents emotional (or dispositional) fluctuation - whether it was written about that or not (and it probably wasn't).
  Secondly, according to the 'Holy-Gift' arrangement of songs, this song falls at the very end of the album, and follows The Patient. In this order, I view this song as describing the exhausting monotony and boredom that a hospitalized patient experiences after the determination evident in The Patient wears off. With nothing better to do, the isolated and bored patient stared out the window at nothing happening (the weather "changing", like watching the grass grow) and wishes for human interaction of any kind. This message of appreciate the moment and your freedom while you still have it fits in with the whole message of the Holy Gift well, but once again likely has nothing to do with what was really intended.
  Hopefully these interpretations were at least interesting to someone, if not helpful. Maybe they can inspire someone to view this powerful and moving song in a different, or at least deeper, way. Thanks.

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