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"When Words Fail" from Shrek The Musical
Jeanine Tesori
Original Text

Text by David Lindsay-Abaire

I picked this flower
Right over there
Is where it grew
And I don’t really like it
But it made me think of you
Because it’s pretty
Is what I’m trying to say
And you are also pretty
But I like you anyway

So please accept this flower
With its petals and a stem
Which represent my feelings
And tells you how
Oh man I’m in trouble

When words fail
What will I do
When words fail
How will she know how I feel
When words fail
Will I fail too

Hello fair princess
Oh look the moon
Is out tonight
You remind me of that moon
Because its big and bright
And by big I don’t mean chubby
Obviously you’re not fat
But your personality is biggish
Is what I meant by that

Sorry ‘bout that fat thing
I’m on the hefty side myself
I have to blame the gene pool
Which reminds me of
Oh where am I going with this

When words fail
What will I do
When words fail
How will she know how I feel
When words fail
Will I fail too

Do I have a snowball’s chance
Are my prospects just to grim
I spent my life stuck in the mud
Now I’m crawling out on a limb

If words fail
She’ll know what I mean
If words fail
She’ll just take my hand
She sees me like no one else has
If words fail
She’ll understand
She’ll understand