Synopsis

A woman moves through different periods of history while the song connects her to a series of romantic relationships. Each lover appears at a different stage of life, but time keeps moving forward and she remains behind, witnessing love, separation, aging, and loss. The video's dreamlike structure emphasizes the song's concern with mortality and the desire to understand life before it passes. Its recurring historical imagery gives the performance a sweeping, almost timeless quality.

Factoids & Trivia

• The video was released in 1997, alongside the song's rise as the second single from Paula Cole's album *This Fire*.

• The concept presents Cole as an immortal woman whose lovers belong to different eras and ultimately die before her.

• The video is associated with two different edits. The version intended to present the story in chronological order was reportedly replaced in regular rotation by a cut that rearranged the timeline.

• The song later became closely identified with *Dawson's Creek*, whose opening credits used it as the theme. That television association helped give the track and its video a lasting place in late-1990s pop culture.

• Cole wrote, recorded, and produced "I Don't Want to Wait." The studio recording features Tony Levin on bass and Jay Bellerose on drums.