everybody thinks i must be crazy

Oh no, Ed’s mother is alive and well. That song was written from her point of view about her own mother passing, so the line “You were an angel in the shape of my mum” actually refers to Ed’s grandmother. This is also why he says “John” to refer to his dad (rather than calling him dad).

Afire Love and Nancy Mulligan are songs for Ed’s grandparents on his dad’s side, and Supermarket Flowers is about his grandmother on his mom’s side. I think it’s really cool of him to honor his grandparents (and his parents) like that. 

My mom can’t even talk about this song without choking up. She tried to tell me her favorite line and she had to pause for a while first, but then when she actually said the line, she burst into tears. She said she doesn’t know how Ed’s mother would ever be able to listen to it without crying, because she can’t even think about it without tearing up.