just the way it goes

This guy thought he knew where his future lay till he met an old flame.

The first time I saw Annie was in our Sunday school;
we were only five years old, tryin’ to learn the rules;
her hair was dark as a winter’s night; her eyes the clearest blue,
but she moved on with her family long before I met you.

Didn’t mean to hurt you, girl, didn’t mean to make you cry;
didn’t mean to break your heart; it’s just the way it goes ... sometimes.

I was waiting at the station for train to bring me home;
I’d slaved for years in that city hell to pay for a place of our own;
there was no work in the country or the town where we were raised,
so I’d headed back to the urban life with its bars and smart cafes.

Didn’t mean to hurt you, girl, didn’t mean to make you cry;
didn’t mean to break your heart; it’s just the way it goes ... sometimes.

My train was late and, as I waited, pacing up and down,
I cursed the day I packed my bags and headed for the town;
then Annie came round the corner, smiled and said “hello”;
we sat and drank a coffee; I missed my train but, even then, I didn’t mean it; no ...

Didn’t mean to hurt you, girl, didn’t mean to make you cry;
didn’t mean to break your heart; it’s just the way it goes ... sometimes.

I’ll miss you, girl, you know I will, but there’s nothing I can do
to change how I feel about Annie, or the way I feel about you;
I wish things could’ve been different; I hope that you will see;
in just a year or maybe two you’ll have forgotten all about me.

Didn’t mean to hurt you, girl, didn’t mean to make you cry;
didn’t mean to break your heart; it’s just the way it goes ... sometimes.

Didn’t mean to hurt you, girl, didn’t mean to make you cry;
didn’t mean to break your heart; it’s just the way it goes ... sometimes.

(©2004 Stewart Bowman)