She said goodbye to her parents
Kissed her Daddy while her mama cried
Boarded a train like a carousel
She hummed the song that the ice cream man played when he drove by
Oh my, my, my, she loves Ohio in the summertime

White picket fences offer no defenses
And the children laugh in the streets but, oh, that's not all she needs

She says, "There's a great big world out there and I wanna see it
There's a great big world out there and there's a place for me in it
Though I'll miss my mother and the friends I know
Oh, the light burns out if you wait too long
There's a great big world I see and it's waiting out there for me"

She hits the city with half a tank
In a car she bought from a ring she pawned
She spent the summer by happen stance
There was a boy who could read her thoughts with his deep brown eyes
Oh, my, my, my, but when he'd drink he was a different kind

Though white picket fences shook her defenses
And children danced in her dreams
No, that's not all she needs

She says, "There's a great big world out there and I wanna see it
There's a great big world out there and there's a place for me in it
Though I'll miss my mother and the friends I know
Oh, the light burns out if you wait too long
There's a great big world I see and it's waiting out there for me"

I've never felt so alone
I've never felt so alive
I've never been so sure I could learn to fly
I've never felt so alone
I've never felt so alive
I've never been so sure I could learn to fly

I've never felt so alone
I've never felt so alive
I've never been so sure I could learn to fly
I've never felt so alone
I've never felt so alive
I've never been so sure I could learn to fly

Inside her wallet's a photograph
Of the place she's from and the ones she loves

But, "There's a great big world out there and I wanna see it
There's a great big world out there and there's a place for me in it
Though I'll miss my mother and the friends I know
Oh, the light burns out if you wait too long
There's a great big world I see and it's waiting out there for me"

I've never felt so alone
I've never felt so alive
I've never been so sure I could learn to fly
I've never felt so alone
I've never felt so alive
I've never been so sure I could learn to fly 

I've never felt so alone
I've never felt so alive
I've never been so sure I could learn to fly
I've never felt so alone
I've never felt so alive
I've never been so sure I could learn to fly