How To Save A Life By The Fray.

In my opinion, it's about mentoring a kid, maybe in the Big Brother/Sister program or maybe a niece or nephew or your own kid who is on drugs or having problems and doesn't know how to make the right decision. In this situation, you know there's a problem, but this kid maybe doesn't, and he will defend his actions to the death because it's the first real decision he's ever made on his own.

It's a tough situation, because if you cross the line and come across as too controlling, they will want to stay their course even more, but if you aren't stern enough, they won't respect you. The lines

"Lay down a list of what is wrong

The things you've told him all along

And pray to God he hears you"

show the very real and tragic fact that honestly, you cannot do anything about it even though you can see him making the wrong choice and you know how he is going to hurt himself. All you can do is pray that he realises his own mistakes, that he has listened to the things you've been saying to him his whole life to prepare him for this moment.

"As he begins to raise his voice

You lower yours and grant him one last choice

Drive until you lose the road

Or break with the ones you've followed"

Things are not going as planned, and the speaker is afraid of what will happen, but he knows it's absolutely crucial that he keep his cool or else drive the kid further into his problems. After this, the kid will make his own choice ("He will do one of two things He will admit to everything Or he'll say he's just not the same")

The next line, "And you'll begin to wonder why you came", further alludes to this futility.
this song is about a father and his son and his son is doing drugs 
"or break with the ones you've followed" that means that hes followed the drugs addicts and hes gonna break with them if he doesnt change his ways
if u read more of the lyrics it will all make sense. 
In my perspective there are alot of meanings to this song. but these are some things that I think its about heres one more thing I think this song means.
This song is about two people breaking up and its altogether a mess. its like...they want to be together but they have too many differences that they cant get past. "i wouldve stayed up with you all night...had i known how to save a life" reminds me of the fact that, even when you love someone so much, you really cant change who they are. and, obviously, this song shows that he cant save her from whats happening so the relationship just cant go on anymore.


thats in general.

but if you look real deep into the lyrics its pretty clear that there has to be some sort of drug incident involved. it was obviously written by the lead singer who is a recovered drug addict.