
Some songs sound like a story someone made up. This one feels like a page ripped right out of Merle Haggard’s own life.
Released in 1973, If We Make It Through December tells of an unemployed father trying to keep his family together during the holidays. To many, it was a work of fiction. But for Merle, it was a truth he knew in his bones. His father died when he was just nine, leaving his mother to work herself to exhaustion to make ends meet. As a restless teenager, he spent cold California winters sleeping in his truck, taking any odd job to survive. Those memories — the loneliness, the uncertainty, the bite of winter air — never left him.
Musically, it’s deceptively gentle. A steel guitar drifts alongside Merle’s weathered voice, wrapping the sorrow in something warm. It doesn’t beg for attention — it just sits with you, like a friend who knows what you’re going through.
Half a century later, the song still feels like a quiet prayer for struggling families. And maybe that’s why it’s endured: it’s not just about making it through December, but about holding on to hope until spring finally comes.
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Lyrics
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
Got laid off down at the factory
And their timing’s not the greatest in the world
Heaven knows I 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
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