Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas

My all time favorite Christmas song has got to be "Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas". The lyrics are sweet and old fashioned and convey a warm message to the listener. The idea that... "from now on our troubles will be miles away" is very appealing. Christmas is a time for laying our troubles aside for a while and enjoying a day of giving to others. This Christmas song conveys that message perfectly.

"Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas" is credited to the year 1944 and the movie "Meet Me In St. Louis" with Judy Garland. But the original song is actually much older than that. In fact, actress Judy Garland had the lyrics of the song changed for the movie because she felt the original lyrics were too depressing. Those original lyrics spoke of the hope for a better Christmas in the future. They were:

Christmas future is far away,
Christmas past is past,
Christmas present is here today,
Bringing joy that may last.

But Judy Garland preferred the current version and I must say I agree with her. This old Christmas song has not lost it's charm over the last 63 years. It is still as popular as ever and you will no doubt hear it played over countless radio stations and in every department store this Christmas season. When I hear the lyrics of this song I think of Christmases in my own past and I always smile. I come from a large family; I have six brothers and sisters. Our extended family is huge and when you get that many people all together in one place there will no doubt be a few who don't like each other much. But I can remember watching as my uncles, aunts and cousins all worked together to make Christmas magical for us. All disputes were laid aside for one day and Christmas was celebrated with a fun and joyful spirit.