Fatima rises at dawn   The hunger like a flame inside her   It's the feast of Ramadan   And her father's been praying for hours   He wears his disapproval   In a silence, cold but hysterical   Saw her last night with that Christian boy   And his world falls apart in America      Her mother fusses about   Her brother laughs in the kitchen   Then the phone explodes on the wall   Oh, my God, don't let it be Michael   Her father's glare is like violence   Who else would break the tradition   Except someone who laughs at our holy ways   Tears us apart in America      Fatima, you're breaking his heart   He doesn't understand your dilemma   A girl becomes a woman alone   Those who love her   Can no longer help her   Why didn't they tell him back home   Things fall apart in America      Fatima picks up the phone   Michael is his usual hilarious   She listens in silence and wonders   Why American boys are oblivious   I love you but this is good-bye   There are too many rivers between us   Father, forgive me, you're right   Things fall apart in America      Fatima, you're breaking his heart   He doesn't understand your dilemma   A girl becomes a woman alone   Those who love her   Can no longer help her   And Michael stares at the phone   As things fall apart in America