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Little Girl, Please Wait w/Janis Ian

She was the one who kept you so young, now she’s growing
You’re caught by surprise by the look in her eyes - you know what she’s knowing
You sit back and stare into the space she leaves there - your arms are so empty
She’s borrowed your pearls - she wants to take on the world
You’re the one not ready, you say
Little girl please wait, little girl please wait
Little girls will sigh, they might cry, but they must wait

There’s so much to tell her, but you can no longer hold her, you pray in a whisper
You know it’s only fair that she go through her share, heartache will find her
Blindly you trust that she will grow up in spite of what you tell her
What she must do is uncover the truth, there’s no happily ever after – you say
Little girl please wait, little girl please wait
Little girls will sigh, they might cry, but they must wait

She’s part of your history - her future’s a mystery
She’ll need to find levity as she takes her place

She helps set the table, antique lace and sterling silver - her grandmothers’ china
You tell her the tales, women strong, women frail, like hand-me-downs and heirlooms
A chip in the cup, a stain on the cloth, a useful existence
Whether she likes them or not, someday they’ll be hers by default
They’re a gift, they’re a prison - they’re for little girls who wait
Little girl please wait - little girls they sigh
They might cry, but they must wait

Will she seek loyalty inside family boundaries?
She might defy gravity, and just pull away
Little girl please wait
Little girls - we sigh, we might cry, we must wait

©1998 Sally Fingerett, Green Fingers Music, BMI