The teacher had you write a letter, you were eight years old
About the man that you'd become and the positions you'd hold
But this was long before you and Jackie Geronimo met in the Prelude Park at midnight

Now when it came to bells and whistles, Jackie did not lack
And when she kissed you on the kisser, boy, you kissed her back
Now you tell her that you love her and she cuts you slack

When you drink with your buddies on the weekend

And the weeks fly by and the years roll on

You spend your whole life dropping nickels in the bucket, wakin' up at dawn
And while Jackie bestowed the joys of fingerlickin'
The clock up on the wall was tickin'


You got yourself a job cleaning hospital floors
But Jackie had a baby, then she had five more

They'd pay you just enough to drag your $$# to the store
To buy bread, milk and Better Homes & Gardens
Jackie flips the pages and she dreams little dreams

A cottage in the country built with real wood beams
There's a baby in the bedroom, he's starting to scream
She holds him though he probably won't remember it


And the weeks fly by and the years roll on
Sometimes dreams are all you got to keep you going when the day gets long

And you gave up so many just to make a livin'
That clock up on the wall was tickin'


Now the kids are all grateful when they left the nest
And Jackie wasn't perfect but she did her best
You seize the opportunity to get you some rest

But you can't sleep on account of screaming grandkids

The golden years are meant to leave a gleam in your eye

You're starting to discover it's a great big lie
They'll work you like a dog til you quit or you die
But you can't quit cause Jackie needs the benefits


And the weeks fly by and the years roll on
They say patience is a virtue but the doctor says she don't have long

You stood up and tried your damndest not to listen
But that clock up on the wall was tickin'


When they told you to clear the room, that's when it hit you
You watched as the caravan took your sweetheart away
The arguments and fights and money troubles seem so worthless

As the kids throw yellow roses on her grave

And the weeks fly by and the years roll on

The house is quiet now and everything inside it seems to know she's gone
There's a picture of you both sixteen years old just kissing
And that clock up on the wall was tickin'


You always thought she had a chance and it was somewhere hidden
Now you've come to the conclusion that she never did

Not a chance, that is