This song is in no way about happy things nor is it trying to be reassuring. Big Eyed Fish is about not being happy where you are and the man obviously commits suicide. First off, the fish is trying to be something he is not and sees no other way out but to die, and by going into the wave and out of the water, he should know he is going to die. Somewhere we belong is not always somewhere we want to be. Second, the man kills himself by hanging or suffocation because he sees no other way out of his life. There is no way that you can just hold your breath and die, he did it deliberately. Also, the interpretation that he held his breath because he thought that would be a better life for him is just ridiculous and stupid. Third, the monkey symbolizes a person that decided that living on the street would be better than whatever life they had before. Much like the fish, the monkey chose something that they knew they could not survive in because they saw no other way out. Lastly, the chorus most clearly defines the meaning of this song. "Under the weight of life things seem brighter on the other side" is about your LIFE, not how your life is going, and the OTHER SIDE is about heaven/hell (hell because of suicide). When it says there is "no way out of here" it means that you see your life as a living hell, and then if you kill yourself then you are going to go to hell.