|
BERTHE: |
|
She climbs a tree |
|
And scrapes her knee |
|
Her dress has got a tear. |
|
SOPHIA: |
|
She waltzes on her way to mass |
|
And whistles on the stair. |
|
BERTHE: |
|
And underneath her wimpole |
|
She has curlers in her hair! |
|
SOPHIA: |
|
I ever hear her singing in the abbey. |
|
BERTHE: |
|
She's always late for chapel, |
|
MARGARETTA: |
|
But her penitence is real. |
|
BERTHE: |
|
She's always late for everything, |
|
Except for every meal. |
|
MOTHER ABBESS: |
|
I hate to have to say it |
|
But I very firmly feel |
|
BERTHE AND SOPHIA: |
|
Maria's not an asset to the abbey! |
|
MARGARETTA: |
|
I'd like to say a word in her behalf. |
|
Maria makes me laugh! |
|
SOPHIA: |
|
How do you solve a problem like Maria? |
|
MOTHER ABBESS: |
|
How do you catch a cloud and pin it down? |
|
MARGARETTA: |
|
How do you find a word that means Maria? |
|
BERTHE: |
|
A flibberti gibbet! |
|
SOPHIA: |
|
A willo' the wisp! |
|
MARGARETTA: |
|
A clown! |
|
MOTHER ABBESS: |
|
Many a thing you know you'd like to tell her, |
|
Many a thing she ought to understand. |
|
MARGARETTA: |
|
But how do you make her stay |
|
And listen to all you say, |
|
MOTHER ABBESS: |
|
How do you keep a wave upon the sand? |
|
MARGARETTA: |
|
Oh, how do you solve a problem like Maria? |
|
MOTHER ABBESS: |
|
How do you hold a moonbeam in your hand? |
|
MARGARETTA: |
|
When I'm with her I'm confused, |
|
Out of focus and bemused, |
|
And I never know exactly where I am. |
|
SOPHIA: |
|
Unpredictable as weather, |
|
She's as flighty as a feather, |
|
MARGARETTA: |
|
She's a darling, |
|
BERTHE: |
|
She's a demon, |
|
MARGARETTA: |
|
She's a lamb. |
|
SOPHIA: |
|
She'd out-pester any pest, |
|
Drive a hornet from his nest, |
|
BERTHE: |
|
She can throw a whirling dervish |
|
Out of whirl. |
|
MARGARETTA: |
|
She is gentle, |
|
She is wild, |
|
SOPHIA: |
|
She's a riddle. |
|
MARGARETTA: |
|
She's a child. |
|
BERTHE: |
|
She's a headache! |
|
MARGARETTA: |
|
She's an angel! |
|
MOTHER ABBESS: |
|
She's a girl. |
|
ALL NUNS: |
|
How do you solve a problem like Maria? |
|
How do you catch a clown and pin it down? |
|
How do you find a word that means Maria? |
|
A flibberti gibbet! |
|
A willo' the wisp! |
|
A clown! |
|
Many a thing you know you'd like to tell her, |
|
Many a thing she ought to understand. |
|
But how do you make her say, |
|
And listen to all you say? |
|
How do you keep a wave upon the sand? |
|
Oh, how do you solve a problem like Maria? |
|
How do you hold a moonbeam in your hand |
