Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas has long been my favorite Christmas song. This year, it has special meaning.
It was originally performed by Judy Garland in Meet Me in St. Louis, a nostalgic movie musical set near the turn of the last century, and there have been many many covers of it since then. Legend has it that Frank Sinatra asked lyricist Hugh Martin for a few revisions when he wanted to record the song for a Christmas album in 1957 but found the original lyrics, well, a tad glum. Most of us have been singing these slightly more upbeat lyrics ever since.
When Judy (as Esther Smith) sings it to Margaret O’Brien, who plays her little sister, it is Christmas Eve; the Smith family has been thrown into turmoil by their father’s announcement that he will be relocating them all to New York right after the holidays. This comes at least three-quarters of the way into a film in which all anyone can talk about is the World’s Fair which is to open in their “home town” the following spring. Esther’s St. Louis is a charming place full of horse-drawn carriages, clanging trolley cars and adorable boys-next-door. She and her siblings are devastated at having to leave, feeling that their lives will never be the same again.
It’s no accident that this song (original version) was first sung in a film released in November, 1944, when many families were separated by the war, and had been for some time. I can’t quite believe how appropriate they are for this current Christmas when many of us will forgo gathering with friends and loved ones because of the pandemic. Our celebrations are likely to be much “littler” than we would like.
The original lyrics are sad and wistful, acknowledging – unusual for a seasonal ditty - that we have troubles, that we may not feel okay. But they also remind us that things won’t always be as they are. They encourage us to just hold on a little longer:
Have yourself a merry little Christmas
Let your heart be light
Next year all our troubles will be out of sight
Have yourself a merry little Christmas
Make the yule tide gay
Next year all our troubles will be miles away
Once again as in olden days
Happy golden days of yore
Faithful friends who are dear to us
Will be near to us once more
Someday soon, we all will be together
If the fates allow
Until then, we'll have to muddle through somehow
So have yourself a merry little Christmas now.
- Amy