Mother’s Love: “The Best Day” Lyrics Meaning
The Best Day is one of Taylor’s only songs that is exclusively about her family. It’s a nostalgic look back at where she came from and how she got where she is today.
If you’re a Swiftie, you are likely also an Andrea Swift stan – we know she’s the bedrock from where Taylor came from. But what can we learn about this mother daughter relationship from Taylor’s early lyrics?
Here’s my complete English teacher analysis of Taylor’s The Best Day lyrics, line by line. Let’s see what we can find out about the angel that is Andrea Swift.
The Best Day (Taylor’s Version) by Taylor Swift
- Title: The Best Day (Taylor’s Version)
- Track: 12, Fearless (Taylor’s Version)
- Written By: Taylor Swift
- Pen: Fountain
- Secret Message: “God bless Andrea Swift.”
- Lyrics via Genius
The Best Day Narrative Analysis
- Setting: In the present, looking back at a series of childhood moments.
- Characters: Narrator (Taylor), “You” (Mom, Andrea Swift)
- Mood: Nostalgic, comforting, grateful.
- Conflict: Growing pains, and learning how the world works.
- Inciting Incident: Likely looking back at old photos or home movies.
- Quest: Let her mom know how much she loves her!
- Symbols & Metaphors: “cold,” car rides, fairy tales (princesses, pirate ships, etc.), “shine.”
- Theme: Nostalgic family love.
- Imagery: “sky is gold,” “big coat on,” “trees change in the fall”, “hold me tight and grab the keys,” “laughin on the car ride home”, “prettiest lady in the whole wide world”
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What Was the Secret Message in The Best Day?
In the original Fearless liner notes, the secret message for The Best Day was: “God bless Andrea Swift.”
This is one of Taylor’s most emotional secret messages, and it’s rare that it actually names a person. But this track dedicated to her mom definitely deserves a very personal secret message, and naming her mother makes it all the more endearing.
Who is The Best Day About?
The Best Day is about Taylor’s mom, Andrea Swift. It’s a nostalgic look back at her childhood, how powerful a figure her mom has been in her life and her career, and is a love song for mothers and daughters everywhere.
The Best Day Lyrics Meaning: Line by Line
“I’m five years old, it’s gettin’ cold,” Taylor says in the opening verse, “I’ve got my big coat on.” She’s small, and the weather’s getting cold.
But this is also a metaphor for the “cold” world that she’ll have to face when she grows up. Her “big coat” – supplied by her mother – keeps her physically and metaphorically warm.
“I hear your laugh and look up smilin’ at you,” she says, hearing the comforting sound of her mom, and “I run and run.” Her mother’s laugh grounds her, and allows her to feel safe to explore.
She’ll run “Past the pumpkin patch and the tractor rides” of her hometown farm setting. This nostalgic Americana is a large part of Taylor’s early albums, but slowly fades away in later ones as the songwriter mentally and physically moved to “the big city”.
“Look,” she says, “now the sky is gold.” Mother and daughter gaze at the golden sunset, symbolically representing the good fortune that is to come in the future. This moment is special and shining, and it also foreshadows future success.
“I hug your legs and fall asleep on the way home,” she says, grounded and rooted by the presence of her mom. This is safety, and this is comfort.
1st Chorus: “Snow White’s House”
Taylor reflects on immaturity, growth, and the passage of time in the chorus.
She doesn’t know “why all the trees change in the fall,” meaning that she doesn’t know a lot of big lessons about the world yet. But that’s okay, because she has her guiding light – her mom – right there with her.
“But I know you’re not scared of anything at all,” she says of her mom and protector. Her mother is brave, which helps her to stay brave.
“Don’t know if Snow White’s house is near or far away,” she says, hinting that she was into fairytales from a young age. Taylor will use fairy tale metaphors in nearly every album, and they’re especially prominent on Fearless like in Love Story, Today Was a Fairytale, and White Horse.
The line between fantasy and reality is blurred at age 5, but she does “know I had the best day with you today.” She’s not sure of much, but she’s sure she’s secure, and with her mom by her side, she can face any obstacles, real or imaginary.
Verse 2: “Grab the Keys”
“I’m thirteen now,” she says, fast-forwarding to another anecdote. This time we’re in her teenage years, and she’s the age of her lucky number: 13.
“And don’t know how my friends could be so mean,” she says, likely alluding to the infamous shopping mall story:
“In middle school, my friends decided I was weird, and they didn’t like my hair. They ditched me and talked behind my back, which is cool — I’m over it. [laughs] One time I called them and said, “Hey, do you want to go to the Berkshire Mall?” They all gave me excuses and said no.
So I go to the mall with my mom, and don’t you know, we run into all of them. Together. Shopping. My mom could see I was about to cry, so she said, “You know what? We’re going to the King of Prussia mall,” which was the mecca.”
–Taylor Swift
“I come home cryin’ and you hold me tight and grab the keys,” she says, finding comfort in her mother’s plan of action. She’ll take her away, distract her, and escape these hurt feelings for a while.
“And we drive and drive,” she says, finding freedom and relief in a car ride, “until we found a town far enough away.” They get out of their small town where this friendship drama is happening, and find solace in a palace where no one knows them.
“And we talk and window shop ’til I’ve forgotten all their names,” she says, slowly coming back into herself and putting things in perspective.
This last line is ironic, looking back. Taylor has likely – truly – “forgotten all their names.” But I bet they’ve never forgotten hers, and regretted treating her so poorly.
2nd Chorus: “Don’t Know How Long it’s Gonna Take to Feel Okay”
The second chorus continues within her teenage anecdote.
“I don’t know who I’m gonna talk to now at school,” she says, worried about going back to school and facing the friends who hurt her feelings so badly.
“But I know I’m laughin’ on the car ride home with you,” she says, finding solace and companionship in her mom. She might not have great friendships at school, but she has a best friend in her mom.
“Don’t know how long it’s gonna take to feel okay,” she says of this heartbreaking experience, hinting that time will, eventually, heal all wounds.
“But I know I had the best day with you today,” she says, living in the moment. She’s had the worst day, but her mother’s support has turned it into an incredible bonding moment.
Bridge: “I Have an Excellent Father”
“I have an excellent father,” she says in the bridge, “his strength is making me stronger.” The comparison between her mother as kind and compassionate vs. her father as “excellent” is an odd one.
I don’t think she means anything by it, it’s just interesting to note that her father is portrayed as “strong” and “smart” and “excellent,” while her mother is painted with an entire rainbow of endearing emotions.
“God smiles on my little brother,” she says, looping in her early Christian ideals that will pretty much fade away after this album (within her lyrics). “Inside and out, he’s better than I am,” she says of her brother Austin.
This is a common thing for siblings to do – compare themselves to the other. But it also shows how much she admires her brother, which is really sweet. It must not be easy to be the relatively unknown brother of the world’s most famous person.
“I grew up in a pretty house and I had space to run,” she says, painting a portrait of a privileged, secure childhood, “And I had the best days with you.” All the days of her youth were made magical by her mother.
Verse 3: “Princesses and Pirate Ships”
In verse three, Taylor is watching a home movie of herself and her mom when she was three. Another fairytale reference marks this time as an age of innocence and make believe.
“There is a video I found from back when I was three,” she says, “You set up a paint set in the kitchen and you’re talkin’ to me.”
This seems like a simple moment, but what it symbolizes is her mother’s fostering of her daughter’s creativity. She’s always supported her art, and supplied her with the tools to develop her imagination.
“It’s the age of princesses and pirate ships and the seven dwarves,” she says, remembering the era when fantasy and reality blurred, and her imagination could run wild.
“Daddy’s smart and you’re the prettiest lady in the whole wide world,” she says, looking up to her mom like she’s the princess of her childhood fairytale.
Final Chorus: “Stayin’ Back and Watchin’ Me Shine”
“Now I know why all the trees change in the fall,” she says in the final chorus, from her current adult perspective. She’s learned more about the world, and knows that in life there are seasons of sadness, and seasons of happiness.
“I know you were on my side even when I was wrong,” she says, looking back on her rebellious teenage years where she thought she knew everything. Her mom was never her opponent; she was always her teammate or coach.
“And I love you for givin’ me your eyes,” she says of her mother’s kind eyes – Taylor’s look an awful lot like hers. But “giving me your eyes” is also a metaphor for the way she sees the world.
We’ve learned that her mother is kind, protective, and loves her fiercely. Taylor getting her “eyes” means she has the same perspective on family and life: she’s also kind, protective, and loves her mother fiercely.
“I love you for staying back and watchin’ me shine,” she says of her mother’s support. She never tried to overshadow Taylor, or dim her light. She supported her road to stardom, and stood back and admired her daughter instead of trying to control her.
“And I didn’t know if you knew,” she says, “So I’m taking this chance to say that I had the best day with you today.” Taylor pops out of the narrative, breaking the fourth wall to say that this song is her “taking this chance to say” how much she loves her mother.
But, as the entire narrative isn’t set in one particular day, “the best day with you today” means every day. All the days of her life have been the best, because her mother has always been there, and always will be.
The Best Day Meaning: Final Thoughts
Though this song is fairly simple lyrically, it really showcases Taylor’s storytelling abilities. Through a small series of childhood anecdotes, she paints an entire world of motherly love, and tells us so much about how she became the person she is today.
When you put this song side-by-side with Taylor’s later Soon You’ll Get Better, it illuminates both tracks. In The Best Day, we see how her mom has always supported and nurtured her, and in Soon You’ll Get Better, we find out just how close their bond really is.
But what this track also reveals is that she doesn’t take for granted where she came from, or where she’s going. She knows her family was – and is – instrumental to her success, and she wouldn’t be where she is without them.
Bless you, Andrea Swift, for being such a great mom.
More Songs from Fearless (Taylor’s Version)
- Fearless & Fearless TV Prologues
- Fearless
- Fifteen
- Love Story
- Hey Stephen
- White Horse
- You Belong With Me
- Breathe
- Tell Me Why
- You’re Not Sorry
- The Way I Loved You
- Forever & Always
- The Best Day
- Change
- Jump Then Fall
- Untouchable
- Come in With the Rain
- Superstar
- The Other Side of the Door
- Today Was a Fairytale
- You All Over Me [From the Vault]
- Mr Perfectly Fine [From the Vault]
- We Were Happy [From the Vault]
- That’s When (ft. Keith Urban) [From the Vault]
- Don’t You [From the Vault]
- Bye Bye Baby [From the Vault]
