Lydia Stinson - "A Trip to the Library" (She Loves Me; Jerry Bock & Sheldon Harnick)

QUISISANA AT 54 BELOW
January 26, 2020 - Live at Feinstein's/54 Below
Music Directed by Mory Ortman
Stage Managed by Jamie Rose Bukowski
Produced by Marshall Taylor, Quisisana
Filmed & Edited by FAMOUS IN NY - famousinny.com

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You've never seen such a place! So many books, so much marble.... So.... quiet. And suddenly all of my confidence dribbled away with a pitiful plop, My head was beginning to swim and my forehead was covered in cold perspiration. I started to reach for a book, but my hand automatically came to a stop. I don't know how long I stood frozen, a victim of panic and mortification! Oh, how I wanted to flee When a kindly voice, a gentle voice, whispered, "Pardon me..." "Pardon me"? Uh-huh! And there was this dear, sweet, clearly respectable, thickly bespectacled man Who stood by my side and quietly said to me, "Ma'am? Don't mean to intrude, but I was just wondering, are you in need of some help?" I said, "No... Yes I am." The next thing I know, I'm sipping hot chocolate and telling my troubles to Paul, whose tender brown eyes kept sending compassionate looks. A trip to the library has made a new girl of me, For suddenly I can see the magic of books! I have to admit, in the back of my mind, I was praying he wouldn't get fresh, And all of the while I was wondering why An illiterate girl should attract him. Then all of a sudden, he said that I couldn't go wrong with "The Way of all Flesh." Of course it's a novel, but I didn't know, or I certainly wouldn't have smacked him! Well, he gave me a smile that I couldn't resist And I knew at once how much I liked This Optometrist. "Optometrist?" Optometrist! You know what this dear, sweet, slightly bespectacled gentleman said to me next? He said he could solve this problem of mine, I said, "How?" He said if I'd like, he'd willingly read to me some of his favorite things. I said, "When?" He said, "Now." His novel approach seemed highly suspicious, and possibly dangerous too. I told myself, "Wait, think!" Dare you go up to his flat? What happens if things go wrong? It's obvious he's quite strong. He read to me all night long! Now how about that? It's hard to believe how truly domestic And happily hopeful I feel. I picture my Paul there, reading aloud as I cook. As long as he's there to read, there's quite a good chance, indeed, a chance that I'll never need to open a book! Unlike someone else, someone I dimly recall, I know he'll only have eyes for me, my Optometrist, Paul!