Why There's a Tear in My Eye
The Carter Family Lyrics

I once loved a beautiful maiden
There was a time when I deeply loved a woman who was exceptionally beautiful

As fair as the blue skies above
She was as lovely as the clear, endless skies

And each night as we wondered together
Every evening, we would wander hand in hand

The moon seemed to smile on our love
The moon's glow seemed to bless our affection

We vowed to be true to each other
We made a solemn promise to remain faithful forever

And nothing could cause us to part
No circumstance could ever tear us apart

But we never once dreamed that the future
However, we never anticipated that in time

Held only a broken heart
Our love would only result in a shattered, pained heart

Then there came the night when we parted
One fateful night, we separated

We quarrelled as all sweethearts do
Like all lovers, we engaged in a heated argument

And I learned what it was to be jealous
In that moment, I experienced the feeling of jealousy

When she told me our love was untrue
She confessed that our love was in fact untrue

She told me she had always been faithful
She insisted that she had remained loyal throughout

She swore that her love could not die
She passionately vowed that her love for me would never fade

And then when I did not believe her
Yet, when I doubted her words

She kissed me and told me goodbye
She kissed me with finality and bid me farewell

I found I had falsely accused her
It became clear to me that I had wrongly blamed her

And went back to make her my bride
Filled with regret, I returned to reclaim her as my wife

And there in the door stood her mother
However, at the doorway, her mother stood

She told me my sweetheart had died
Devastatingly, she informed me that my beloved had passed away

I went in and knelt down beside her
In sorrow, I entered the room and knelt beside her lifeless form

And there in the hush of that room
In the solemn silence of that space

I prayed that my maker would take me
I fervently prayed for my creator to remove me from this world

And send my soul down to its doom
To condemn my soul to eternal damnation

So now I have told you the reason
Thus, I have revealed the cause

There's always a tear in my eye
Why there is an ever-present teardrop in my eye

For long weary years I've repented
Throughout many exhausting years, I have deeply regretted my actions

But I'm longing to lay down and die
However, I yearn to surrender myself and embrace death

And I wonder if I'll be forgiven
I ponder whether I will receive forgiveness

When I face the master someday
Upon confronting the divine master at a later time

And I wonder if I'll see my sweetheart
Additionally, I am filled with curiosity whether I will reunite with my beloved

On that beautiful shore far away
Upon reaching that distant, magnificent shoreline