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You know, I have a dream I want to tell you about

Omoi no Kakera by Switch Song Analysis

Lyric Translation from Mika Enstars (@/mikaenstars) and KYM2020 (taken from the Ensemble Stars Wiki)

Overview:

This song is about finding what you once were, through the slumbering fragments of things you once desired or dream of. Even if you can't find it, there are people who are more than willing to help you reconnect with them and repaint them for you, embracing who you once were.

Note: This analysis is made with me having a decent knowledge about metaphors and Switch itself. I have dived deeper a bit with the Japanese original of the song, however I have not included every detail that might be hiding! So if you can add more to this or see some misinterpretation, please free to discuss with me! I love discussing these things with people! Anyways, enjoy reading!

Omoi no Kakera is a bit of a hard one to crack and it's bound to be different for everyone, but I will share with you today what I see this song to be!

Since it's a Sora-center song, fittingly, the song centers on Sora and his relationship with Switch. But before that, we should know how the song gets told to us and some references that I will be saying throughout this analysis.

Omoi no Kakera translates to "fragments of imagination". The lyrics also include being in this illusion, particularly using the kanji "幻", which means vision, illusion, apparition, and even a short-lived dream. The song revolves around these things, so buckle up because this is quite a ride!

I am not kidding when this song is a tough nut to crack, it relies heavily on metaphors and references to how Sora perceives Switch and his relationship with the members, both of which I just have a decent knowledge of, but I have taken the challenge to scrap up what I can find. As I said in the note, please freely to criticize or discuss this song with me! I love discussing with people, especially these particular topics.

In order to understand my blabbering in the next few paragraphs, let us address one term that is constantly repeated in the song and what ties this whole song together:

Fragments of Imagination/Memories

This is basically the topic and even the title of the song and it's a phrase repeated in almost every stanza of this song. Not really the exact words, but precisely the words imagination and memories are constantly repeated throughout the song. These are mostly referred to as being found or being seen, however, it's mostly accompanied by being caught in a dream or being in someone's heart:

The sleeping fragments of memory will remain there in your heart The world that surrounds us is a swaying fragment of memory

These are also referred that could be touched:

When I touch it (the fragments of memory), it's like I can hear you, I wish you could tell me

Or be interacted with:

If you have trouble finding them, come and see me Connect them and paint a new layer

What I could get from this, basing the that this is possibly Sora's perspective, this might be literal memories from him or referring to memories, specifically with Switch, which will be much clearer as we go on. The ability to interact with these memories will be important later on as we go. With this in mind, let's finally tackle the song itself!

The song starts by introducing us that the persona of this song is in a dream, or at least it will bring us much more understanding since it's a Switch song, it has magical elements to it.

The world that surrounds us is a swaying fragment of memory When I touch it, it's like I can hear you, I wish you could tell me

Keep in mind that this is Sora's world, the memories are his. When he touches one of his memories, he feels like he can hear one of the members of Switch.

The next lines are actually heart-wrenching to dive deep about, even if you don't know the context behind it all:

A beautiful dream that you told me that day I've already forgotten about it now You're already yourself there's nothing I'm worried about

Let it be known that the first line, "A beautiful dream that you told me that day," is sung by both Natsume and Tsumugi, telling Sora that he has told them something before, to which he responds, "I've already forgotten about it now." Natsume then responds, "You're already yourself" or "You're your own person" in other translations. Let's take these one by one. Sora has told Natsume and Tsumugi about his dream before, and the two then tried to let him remember it, but Sora responded he doesn't remember it anymore. Natsume responded to him with "You're your own person (now)." However, this is immediately followed by "There's nothing to worry about."

This entails that Natsume (and Tsumugi by extension) have seen how much Sora has grown, to the point that he has already forgotten about a dream he had (we will come back to this in a second). Even though he has forgotten this dream, Sora became his own now, which Natsume is proud of, reassuring him that "there's nothing to worry about it."

Even if one day it may seem like nothing but a dream The sleeping fragments of memory will remain there in your heart If you have trouble finding them, come and see me Connect them and paint a new layer

The basic meaning of this stanza without any connection with any prior lines is even though everything feels like a dream (specifically a short-lived dream), the fragments or the traces of the memory will always be inside them. When in times they couldn't find themselves, they should seek guidance to connect them and bring them in a new light or make them better or change it (in reference to "painting a new layer").

Honestly, that doesn't boil anything down to any simpler terms, so in order for me to clearly state the meaning of this line, let's take another line from the song.

This world that we've chosen, the fragments of memory that come and go If we recognize each other Our days will become even more wonderful

This stanza of the song basically confirms that the fragments are from Sora's and Tsumugi and Natsume is in the fragments, especially with the line "If we recognize each other, our days will become even more wonderful." This is a reference to how Sora desires for Switch to be together (if you want a deeper dive on this King of Thieves scout story is a good way to start!) It's not really in terms of recognizing each other, but it's apparent with Sora that he hates it when Switch, especially Natsume and Tsumugi get into misunderstandings, especially with their "colors" change. With the previous line being "the fragments of memory that come and go", meaning every day in Sora's life, he wants Switch to be together and he wants these specific fragments of memories.

You know, I have a dream I want to tell you about. It continues out into the sky, far far away, like a line being drawn Never stop dreaming and never give up on anything...

When I said we will come back to the dream Sora "forgotten" about earlier, we will come back with him telling the first line, "You know, I have a dream I want to tell you about."

This is just my interpretation (everything about this post is my interpretation, so please feel free to say something that I missed or got wrong), but since this line is after the prior lines, it might be referring to how Natsume and Tsumugi have helped him to remember his dream or reconnect with them. This is also heavily backed up that this is from past to future order with these lyrics:

A continuation of the past is waiting in the future Today I will show you it

A continuation of the past dream for the future that they will do in the present.

Let's go back to the chorus of the song:

The chorus of the song could be explained in simple terms: If things don't seem true or things might be confusing, the desire will still always stay in your heart. And if you have lost yourself, you could find us, we will connect these desires and memories and make them even better.

With that in mind, putting ALL of what I have blabbered about in this whole analysis in Switch terms:

It is implied that Sora is lost, even from the start he told us that he could hear them from his memories, and telling "I want you to tell me" is basically a term asking for guidance. Sora has forgotten about the dream he once told to Natsume and Tsumugi, may it be Switch being recognized or finally bringing the magic of Switch to everyone (or anything). Natsume and Tsumugi then reassure him even though he has forgotten the dream, or even if everything feels confusing or like a dream, the sleeping fragments (or the hidden memories or desires that are waiting to be awakened), are always in his heart. They will help Sora to find them if he can't, connect them, and make them better for Sora. Once they did connect, Sora finally found himself or this dream that continues on, telling himself to never stop dreaming and never give up on anything. It's a continuation of what Sora has desired before through the present, where Natsume and Tsumugi are helping him, up to the future of himself and Switch.

Adding onto this, the dream that they might be saying here couldn't be the literal sense of Sora's dream, however, it fits as well, but what he really is or what he desires. It actually makes sense how Natsume told him, "You're your own person" meaning Sora has grown already. However, the thing that Sora lost was integral to him, even tho Natsume (and Tsumugi) were proud that he was growing up. Even the last line emphasizes how important this dream was or whatever Sora lost:

Embrace the fragments of your memories...

It's telling to hold on tight to these memories, as even when we grow older, these dreams are what shaped us throughout the years.

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