When I had the legs of a strong young boy,
To run through the woods was all my joy.
I would run like a deer and jump like a goat
And a young boy's song rang in my throat.

[Chorus:]
I got the world in a jug,
I got the world in a jug,
I got the world in a jug,
And the stopper in my hand!

When I had the legs of a strong young man,
They carried me all over this troubled land.
I was much too young for care or woe
And I always sang wherever I'd go.

[Chorus]

I soon had the aches of an older man
Who liked to snooze on the old divan
Or do a little work with a shovel and hoe
And whistle a tune from long ago.

[Chorus]

Now I have no legs, no legs at all;
I live in a chair, with an old man's shawl
Feeling like an old and useless ruin,
But once in a while I hum a little tune.

[Chorus]