As a teenage girl in Texas, raised on dust and weeds and cactus She first saw pictures of the river Seine From her window late at night, she'd pretend the stars were lights Of the cafes in the St. Germain des Pres And she longed to see the world, and converse with other girls As they laughed and talked and walked along the boulevard To float to Paris and the lights in a taxi late at night Seems like a leap of faith to make from this old farm But she made herself a promise that someday she'd celebrate Her birthday in the St. Germain des Pres After college she got married, she worked in theatre and had some babies Her life took on directions of its own She became a working mother, she lived her life for others For her husband, for the children and her home Then one day her grown daughter said, she was off to Europe and Have you ever thought about it Mom? She said of course I used to honey, a lot when I was your age But I hadn't thought about it much until right now She remembered the promise, that someday she's celebrate Her birthday in the St. Germain des Pres She sees how quickly life can pass by, how easily a dream dies You can't just live your life for someone else So she boards the plane for Paris, she thinks she'll need a new dress As she keeps that birthday promise to herself Oh she thought she'd do it sooner, seems so important to her But life moves on when you're off making plans But every now and then it happens, a chance appears for you to grab it That's why this time she just couldn't let it pass Cause she made herself a promise that someday she'd celebrate Her birthday in the St. Germain des Pres And later take a walk beside the Seine