There was a girl a time ago
Who ran amok through the meadow
Barefoot and singing that
She’d never want a fellow.

She was not responsible
She just wanted to be free
And have a life of play
But her father wasn’t happy.

And he said, “Grow up, grow up,
Can’t yer, girl?
You gotta work work work,
And focus on the world.
If you want t’ marry
You’ll have to comb those curls
And if you want some children
You’ll have to work a lil.”

She said, “I don’t give a toss
‘Cause I’ll just sure fail
And I don’t really care
Don’t want to wear a veil.”

And she danced on the fields
She danced on the way
And danced ‘til the morning
Then she danced all day.

Her mother slapped her hard
An’ her father went wild
He said, “Listen to me now
You very stupid child.”

And he said, “Grow up, grow up,
Can’t yer, girl?
You gotta work work work,
And focus on the world.
If you want t’ marry
You’ll have to comb those curls
And if you want some children
You’ll have to work a lil.”

But she let her hair loose
Threw the lacy dress off
Oh! she leapt in the river
An’ swam off with a scoff.

She shivered out faraway
Somewhere near Suffolk
Where she met a handsome trav’ler
Who gave her his cloak.

“Girl, what you doin’?”
“Just abandoned m’ groom.”
“Why d’you do that?”
“I just want a chance to bloom.”

And he said, “Grow up, grow up,
Can’t yer, girl?
You gotta work work work,
And focus on the world.
If you want t’ marry
You’ll have to comb those curls
And if you want some children
You’ll have to work a lil.”

And she said, “Don’t care, don’t care,
Can’t yer see?
I want fun fun fun,
That’s what’s right for me.
Don’t want a household
I need to be free
I like meself this way
It’s how I’m meant to be.”

She knocked him off the cart
And without a backwards glance
She “yah!”ed, the horses galloped
Into the bright world of chance.