The Meaning Behind Merle Haggard’s ‘December’ Hardship Song

In 1973, Merle Haggard opened his Christmas album with a hardship song.

“If We Make It Through December” became so popular that Haggard included it as the title track on his 16th studio album released the following year. Merle Haggard’s Christmas Present contains holiday standards like “Silent Night” and “Jingle Bells.” But the dark opener contrasts with the album’s lighter tunes: “Santa Claus and Popcorn,” and “Bobby Wants a Puppy Dog for Christmas.”

However, Bobby wants a puppy because he’s lonely. The stark reality of Haggard’s childhood shaped his working-class songwriting. Born during the tail end of the Great Depression, Haggard’s family had moved from Oklahoma to California.

The outlaw superstar was born in 1937 in Oildale, California, and a hard life awaited him on his way to becoming a country legend.

A Desperate Season

Though Haggard didn’t consider “If We Make It Through December” a Christmas song, it does reflect the economic anxiety the commercialized holiday intensifies for struggling families.

Got laid off down at the factory
And their timing’s not the greatest in the world
Heaven knows I’ve been working hard
Wanted Christmas to be right for Daddy’s girl

I don’t mean to hate December
It’s meant to be the happy time of year
And my little girl don’t understand
Why Daddy can’t afford no Christmas here

Also, you might have noticed the pervading sadness accompanying well-known Christmas songs. “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas” is profoundly sad.

Listen to Judy Garland sing the following line: Until then, we’ll have to muddle through somehow. It’s in the same spirit that Haggard writes. One foot in front of the other, doing your best just to survive.

Going to California

The holiday season brings much joy. But it also amplifies empty loss, loneliness, and hardship. In Haggard’s story, the falling snow isn’t a Hallmark card. And cold weather often freezes work for laborers—idyllic joy for thee but despair for me.

If we make it through December
Everything’s gonna be all right, I know
It’s the coldest time of winter
And I shiver when I see the falling snow

If we make it through December
Got plans to be in a warmer town come summertime
Maybe even California
If we make it through December, we’ll be fine

The narrator looks to the West for a warmer climate and a better future for his daughter.

If the Fates Allow

Phoebe Bridgers covered “If We Make It Through December” in 2020. She builds her version atop a somber piano. Her voice sounds resigned, tired. She’s trying to convince the child in the song that it’ll be all right. But maybe she’s also trying to convince herself.

The way the track is mixed, her piano sounds dull. There’s no brightness from the warm sun. It’s gray and gloomy, like the hard lives of the song’s characters. If we make it through December. “If” not “when.” There’s uncertainty.

It’s the Coldest Time of Winter

According to Haggard, “If We Make It Through December” isn’t a “pure” Christmas song. The upbeat tempo, happy shuffle, and peppy guitar licks give the tune a lighthearted feel.

But maybe its cheery vibe offers a glimmer of hope—the sunny optimism of bluer skies in California. December may be cold and bleak, but it will eventually pass.

Photo by Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images