Opening and Trio - Just a Little Ring

歌詞

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?