The 'mood ring' symbolises the person he loves and her ever changing moods, as a result the singer seems to be at arms length from her, leaving him just being able to observe her external actions and never be able to understand her internal thoughts. It could be inferred that the object of his affection has a personality disorder such as Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD).
The song begins with "so you wanna get close?", which could be the words of the girl, asking him if he wants to get close to her despite her borderline personality. This phrase is repeated into the endow the song, connoting her insecurity that he may not stay with her through her issues, but he reminds her that his love is "always".`
The singer compares her to grandiose things; a "princess on a pillow seducing the moon"; his "muse" and a "beautiful girl". For him her "crystal charms" are so great that she has the power to seduce celestial objects such as the "moon". Yet he positions himself as far below her. He feels like the Petrarchan lover, compared to her he is simply a "cowboy" with a "handkerchief" and just "a song to see" him through. He, the "artist" devotes this song to his "muse". The relationship between artists and muses is a continuous strand through all forms of art, especially ballads which are usually devoted to someone. Being the artist, as the singer admits, can be an extremely "lonely" experience. The job of the artist is to capture the essence of the muse and translate it into a form of art, such as a ballad, to keep that person alive through song. Yet the artist never gets this reciprocated. On the other hand, the line "if you were the artist and not the muse, you'd be lonely like me too", not only conveys the singers loneliness as the artist but his lack of understanding of his "muse". He assumes that as the "muse" she can not possibly be lonely, however that is not always the case. Being the muse can be an equally lonely experience, since they typically do not get recognised for their contributions to pieces. They are also only ever presented through the eyes of another, unable to express their idea of who they are to audiences. On both ends of the relationship there is suffering. He consistently describes himself as someone simple, being left to look at his "mood ring" who is far more complex than him.
However, he also recognises her capacity to hurt him. She has flirtatious tendencies with others leaving him at home waiting for her, and he can not keep up with her moods, she's "origami paper" that he doesn't know what to make of her. The whole song oozes with his love for her, he is aware of her strengths and faults but regardless he describes her with love. Typically, people with BPD are presented as crazed with their mood swings, but to him he still sees it as being yet another beautiful aspect of her. The "origami" paper has the capacity to turn into beautiful things, and is never something that can harm others. He is also warned by others to stay away from her, people have called her "bad news" (which is a typical perception of those with personality disorders). Yet regardless of it all, he dedicates his life to loving her "always". This is reinforced by the metaphor of her being a "mood ring", which may change in colour but never changes in shape. The ring is eternal, (and perhaps connotes his incline to marry her), representing his unwavering devotion to her.
