Winter in America
Doug Ashdown Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Oh how I miss December
The frangipani opens up to kiss the salty air
I know you're getting ready for the office
I suppose he's still there, with you,
sharing our morning sun
Winter in America is cold
I wish I could have known, enough of love,
to leave love enough alone
I've learned something of love I wish I'd known
before you left me
But it's funny how you don't know what you've got
until it's gone
And I hope you're getting all the love you've ever wanted
But I wish I was there, with you,
sharing our morning sun
I waken to the sadness of the rain
And making love to strangers
And wishing I had known, enough of love,
to leave love enough alone
Winter in America is cold
And I just keep growing older
I wish I could have known
Enough of love to leave love enough alone
Winter in America is cold
And I just keep growing older
I wish I could have known
Enough of love to leave love enough alone
Doug Ashdown's song, Winter in America, is a melancholic yet beautiful description of lost love and reminiscing of the past. Ashdown begins by setting the scene of a misty harbor on a December morning, a time of year that he misses. The frangipani's scent fills the air with saltiness, and even though he knows his love is getting ready for work with someone else, he still imagines them together, sharing the morning sun. This establishes the theme of loss and regrets, as the lyrics repeat the phrase, "I wish I could have known enough of love to leave love enough alone."
Ashdown then paints a picture of his sadness and loneliness, as he wakes up to the rainy and bleak winter days. He confesses to making love to strangers and laments not knowing enough about love to prevent his heartache. He hopes his former love is receiving all the love they ever wanted, but still, he wishes he were there to share the morning sun with them.
Winter in America as a metaphorical representation of loneliness and isolation is a central theme in this song. The contrast between the cold winter in America and the warm sun of Australia (where Ashdown is from) symbolizes the distance he feels from his past love. The frangipani flowers he mentions represent the nostalgic emotions he feels, as this flower is not native to America and is specifically associated with Australian summers. The simplicity of Ashdown's lyrics and his sincere portrayal of emotions make this song a classic piece of art.
Line by Line Meaning
The harbour's misty in the morning, love
The scene at the harbor in the morning is a little misty and dreamy.
Oh how I miss December
The singer misses a past December, likely because of happy memories associated with it.
The frangipani opens up to kiss the salty air
The frangipani flower releases its scent into the salty air.
I know you're getting ready for the office
The singer knows that his love interest is preparing to leave for work.
I suppose he's still there, with you, sharing our morning sun
The singer imagines his love interest spending the morning with someone else.
Winter in America is cold
The winter season in America can be unpleasantly cold.
And I just keep growing older
The singer feels like he's getting older and time is passing him by.
I wish I could have known, enough of love, to leave love enough alone
The singer wishes he had known enough about love to not sabotage it.
I've learned something of love I wish I'd known before you left me
The singer has had some realizations about love since his love interest left him.
But it's funny how you don't know what you've got until it's gone
The singer reflects on how easy it is to take things for granted until they're no longer there.
And I hope you're getting all the love you've ever wanted
The singer wishes his love interest all the happiness in the world.
But I wish I was there, with you, sharing our morning sun
The singer wishes he were still with his love interest, enjoying the morning sun together.
I waken to the sadness of the rain
Rainy days stir up feelings of melancholy in the singer.
And making love to strangers
The singer is engaging in casual, meaningless sex.
And wishing I had known, enough of love, to leave love enough alone
The singer regrets not being able to have a healthy relationship and leave love alone when it's not right for him.
Winter in America is cold
The harsh winter reality in America is reiterated.
And I just keep growing older
The singer's feeling of time slipping away from him is emphasized.
I wish I could have known
The singer again reiterates his wish to have been more knowledgeable about love.
Enough of love to leave love enough alone
The singer wishes he could have known enough about love to not mess it up.
Contributed by Elijah S. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
bobbollard
When I was in my early twenties I had found the love of my life and was so happy, only for another person to come between us and ruin everything. Everyday for years I would think about it and try and work out what had happened and why. But I could never find the answer.
I didn't take it well and drank a lot and lost my job. I needed a change so went to Nebraska in the US where we have family to get away from the sad memories and all our mutual friends. I spent my time flipping burgers, studying and partying. I actually ended up getting a Phd and living there for over ten years.
Winter in Nebraska is cold!!! And while I met many women I could never meet anyone like Her. This song was the anthem of my life. I used to cry listening to it.
I eventually returned to Australia permanently, still single, and landed a very good job and bumped into Her while walking down the street in the city about 18 months after I got back.
It was the first time I had had any contact with her in about 15 years. This was before Facebook and social media. She had married, had 2 children and got divorced.
We stood chatting on the street for about half an hour while we filled each other in on what happened in the intervening years. And we arranged to catch up again.
Long story short, we reconnected from where we left off, got married, I adopted her children and we have been married for 15 years.
I still cry when I hear this song.
Joe Scuteri
This song tore my soul open. What a truely haunting sound and deep , meaningful song. Love this song 1 million times over.!
hdfkdsjfl
Truly one of the most beautiful songs ever written.
Shaun Minahan
Always brings tears to my eyes for no reason whatsoever. Agree wholeheartedly. Beautiful. Forever.
Christian Kross
Absolutely beautiful magic in these lyrics in song masterpiece
napalm5
Haunting
Dawn Johnson
Oh yes
Dawn Johnson
@Shaun Minahan every time still
80s-Wizard!
What a beautiful song... I feel like it deserves greater recognition in Australian music
deetest logins
This song came on the radio at the same time my Dad was told he had 6 mths to live. My mother had died 4 yrs prior. So this song represents a major turn in my life.
Leanda D_g
I'm so sorry - God bless and keep you - its a beautiful song to remember them by.