Maria

Lyrics

[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 wimple She has curlers in her hair [SOPHIA] I've even heard her singing in the abbey [BERTHE] She's always late for chapel [SOPHIA] But her penitence is real [BERTHE] She's always late for everything Except for every meal I hate to have to say it But I very firmly feel Maria's not an asset to the abbey [MARGARETTA] I'd like to say a word in her behalf [MOTHER ABBESS, spoken] Then say it, Sister Margaretta [MARGARETTA] 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 flibbertigibbet? [SOPHIA] A will-o'-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 [BERTHE] 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'll 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, she's a child [BERTHE] She's a headache [MARGARETTA] She's an angel [MOTHER ABBESS] She's a girl [MOTHER ABBESS, BERTHE, MARGARETTA & SOPHIA] How do you solve a problem like Maria? How do you catch a cloud and pin it down? How do you find a word that means Maria? [MARGARETTA] A flibbertigibbet? [SOPHIA] A will-o'-the-wisp? [BERTHE] A clown? [MOTHER ABBESS, BERTHE, MARGARETTA & SOPHIA] Many a thing you know you'd like to tell her Many a thing she ought to understand [MOTHER ABBESS] But how do you make her stay [SOPHIA] And listen to all you say? [MARGARETTA] How do you keep a wave upon the sand? [MOTHER ABBESS, BERTHE, MARGARETTA & SOPHIA] Oh, how do you solve a problem like Maria? How do you hold a moonbeam in your hand?