Part 3 The Christmas Tree 圣誕樹

A beautifully decorated evergreen tree, with colored lights ablaze inspires in many warm memories of Christmases long past. The Christmas tree has become one of the most beloved and well know holiday symbols.

The tradition of a holiday tree has been around since ancient times and has played an important part in winter celebrations for many centuries. Many pagan festivals used trees when honoring their gods and spirits. In Northern Europe the Vikings considered the evergreen a symbol and reminder that the darkness and cold of winter would end and the green of spring would return. The Druids of ancient England and France decorated oak trees with fruit and candles to honor their gods of harvests. At the festival Saturnalia the Romans decorated trees with trinkets and candles.

The use of a Christmas tree indoors appears to have begun in Germany. German Christians would bring trees into their homes to decorate. In some areas evergreen trees were scarce so the families would build a Christmas pyramid, simple wooden structures which they decorated with branches and candles.

The tradition of the Christmas tree eventually spread through out Europe. The English Royalty helps popularize the tree in England by decorating the first Christmas tree at Windsor Castle in 1841. Prince Albert, husband of Queen Victoria, decorated the first English Christmas Tree with candles, candies, fruits, and gingerbread.

When the German immigrants went to American they also brought along their Christmas trees. In the 1830's most Americans still considered the Christmas tree an oddity. One of the first public displays of a Christmas tree was set up by German Settlers in Pennsylvania. At the time many still considered the tree to be a symbol of pagans and it wasn't until the late 1800's that Americans began accepting the Christmas tree.

Early Christmas trees were often decorated with apples, nuts, cookies, colored popcorn and candles. The invention of electricity in the early 20th century and use of electrical Christmas lights helped spread the use of the Christmas tree.

It is now common in most communities through out the US to feature public displays of Christmas trees. Every year the President of the United States lights the National Christmas Tree in Washington and in New York skaters spin beneath the lighted tree of Rockefeller Center. Through Europe and the rest of the world the Christmas tree has also become readily accepted and adored.

圣誕樹一直是慶祝圣誕節不可少的裝飾物，如果家中沒有圣誕樹，就大大減少了過節氣氛。關于圣誕樹的來源有多種不同的傳說。其中一個是說：大約在十六世紀，圣誕樹最先出現在德國，德國人把長青的松柏枝拿到屋中去擺設，將之成為圣誕樹。后來，由德國人馬丁路德把蠟燭放在樹林中的樅樹枝上，然后點燃蠟燭，使它看起來像是引導人們到伯利恒去。而今日，人們已經改用粉色的小燈泡了。

另一個傳說記載。在很久以前，曾有一位農民，在圣誕節那天遇到一個窮苦小孩，他熱情地接待了這個小孩。小孩臨走時折下一根松枝插在地上，松枝立即變成一棵樹，上面掛滿了禮物，以答謝農民的好意。

圣誕樹真正出現在圣誕節時，首先見于德國，之后又傳入歐洲和美國，并以其優美的姿態，成為圣誕節不可缺少的裝飾。圣誕樹的種類繁多，有天然松柏圣誕樹、也有人造圣誕樹及白色圣誕樹。每棵圣誕樹上都掛滿琳瑯滿目的裝飾品，但每棵樹的頂端必定有個特大的星星，而且也只有該家庭的一家之主可以把這棵希望之星掛上。

Part 4 Christmas Stockings and Christmas Cards 圣誕襪和圣誕卡

There was a kindly nobleman whose wife had died of an illness leaving the nobleman and his three daughters in despair. After losing all his money in useless and bad inventions the family had to move into a peasant's cottage, where the daughters did their own cooking, sewing and cleaning.

When it came time for the daughters to marry, the father became even more depressed as his daughters could not marry without dowries, money and property given to the new husband's family.

One night after the daughters had washed out their clothing they hung their stockings over the fireplace to dry. That night Saint Nicholas, knowing the despair of the father, stopped by the nobleman's house. Looking in the window Saint Nicholas saw that the family had gone to bed. He also noticed the daughters stockings. Inspiration struck Saint Nicholas and he took three small bags of gold from his pouch and threw them one by one down the chimney and they landed in the stockings.

The next morning when the daughters awoke they found their stockings contained enough gold for them to get married. The nobleman was able to see his three daughters marry and he lived a long and happy life.

Children all over the world continue the tradition of hanging Christmas stockings. In some countries children have similar customs, in France the children place their shoes by the fireplace, a tradition dating back to when children wore wooden peasant shoes.

In Holland the children fill their shoes with hay and a carrot for the horse of Sintirklass. In Hungary children shine their shoes before putting them near the door or a window sill.

Italian children leave their shoes out the night before Epiphany, January 5, for La Befana the good witch. And in Puerto Rico children put greens and flowers in small boxes and place them under their beds for the camels of the Three Kings.

關于圣誕節在火爐邊懸掛圣誕襪也有一個有趣的傳說。很久很久以前有一個心地善良的貴族，他的妻子因病去逝，拋下他和他的三個女兒。這個貴族嘗試了不少發明，都失敗了，但也因此耗盡了錢財，所以他們不得不搬到一家農舍里生活，他的女兒們也只得親自燒煮、縫紉和打掃。

一晃幾年過去，女兒們陸續到了出嫁的年齡，父親卻變得更加沮喪，因為他沒錢給女兒們買嫁妝。一天晚上，女兒們洗完衣服后將長統襪掛在壁爐前烘干。圣人Nicholas知道了她們父親的境況后，就在那天晚上，來到她們的家門前。他從窗口看到一家人都已睡著了，同時也注意到了女孩們的長統襪。隨即，他從口袋里掏出三小包黃金從煙囪上一個個投下去，剛好掉在女孩們的長統襪里。

第二天早上，女兒們醒來發現她們的長統襪里裝滿了金子，足夠供她們買嫁妝了。這個貴族也因此能親眼看到他的女兒們結婚，從此便過上了幸福快樂的生活。后來，世界各地的孩子們都繼承了懸掛圣誕襪的傳統。有些國家的孩子則有其它類似的風俗，如在法國，孩子們將鞋子放在壁爐旁等等。

The custom of sending Christmas cards started in Britain in 1840 when the first 'Penny Post' public postal deliveries began. (Helped by the new railway system, the public postal service was the 19th century's communication revolution, just as email is for us today.) As printing methods improved, Christmas cards were produced in large numbers from about 1860. They became even more popular in Britain when a card could be posted in an unsealed envelope for one half-penny - half the price of an ordinary letter.

Traditionally, Christmas cards showed religious pictures - Mary, Joseph and baby Jesus, or other parts of the Christmas story. Today, pictures are often jokes, winter pictures, Father Christmas, or romantic scenes of life in past times.

圣誕樹和圣誕花卉，一般用來裝飾家庭居室，也有用圣誕花卉作禮品贈親友的。圣誕賀卡則完全是節日贈品，表達自己對別人的良好祝愿。

圣誕卡的誕生也有很多種說法，一八六四年，英國的阿爾巴特親王特別推廣這件事，就印制了一千張圣誕圖畫的圣誕卡，開始發售。到一八六五年，印刷的圣誕卡，開始大量銷售了。首先是由德國繪畫彩色的石版工廠印制以后，運送到英國去，正式發售，再從英國傳到世界的各地，于是寄送圣誕卡的風俗，漸漸流行起來。當初圣誕卡的寄送，只通行在基督徒之間，到了二十世紀初，普遍風行，不論是不是基督信徒，都以圣誕卡向親友祝福，和恭賀新年。

另一種說法：圣誕卡始于一八四四年。當時，英國維多利亞女皇和Albert太子在倫敦的溫莎堡里慶祝圣誕節，邀請王族兒童入宮參加宴會，請柬上印有祝賀的詞句。歐洲人從此紛紛仿效，用這種寫上祝賀詞的卡片來互相祝賀圣誕和新年。

圣誕卡片從早期的單色印刷至今日的色音俱全，不但讓收到卡片的人大飽眼福，而且還大飽耳福，一張張會發出聲音的圣誕卡使整個節日的氣氛更加濃厚。

圣誕節這天，指出天下一家世界大同的理想，只有以和平與仁愛的言行達成。寄贈圣誕卡，除表示慶賀圣誕的喜悅外，就是向親友祝福，以表想念之情。以前圣誕卡的畫面，多半與耶穌圣誕有關；現在的圖樣，真是花樣百出，多采多姿。如果你有親友在遙遠的地方，平日忙于工作很少聯系，那么趕緊趁圣誕節寄上一張圣誕卡，表達你的想念和祝福吧。我們在網頁上提供了一些寫圣誕賀卡祝詞的例子，大家在寫圣誕卡的時候可以參考一下。

Part 5 Christmas Party 慶祝圣誕節

Dialogue Script 1 對話原文 1

Peter : Merry Christmas!
Helen: The same to you!
Peter: Are you doing anything special?
Helen: We're having some friends over. What are you doing?
Peter: Oh, I'm just taking it easy.

講解：

1. Merry Christmas! 圣誕快樂！這是一個約定俗成的用法了，這與其他的節日祝福語不同。比如：我們可以說Happy Thanksgiving! Happy Easter. 但不能說Happy Christmas!

2. The same to you! 這里表示“也祝你圣誕快樂”，回答別人對你的問候，為了避免重復，就可以這么說，當然，你也可以回答“Merry Christmas!”。

3. Peter問Helen Are you doing anything special? 你有什么特殊的安排嗎？Helen 回答說We're having some friends over. 我們會邀請一些朋友來家里玩。over這里表示“過來”，例如：I asked her over. 我請她過來的。He's coming over. 他正走過來。

4. 那么Peter會做些什么呢？他說，I'm just taking it easy. 意思是說，我自己輕輕松松的過節，不會為圣誕節而忙碌。take it easy，表示“沉住氣, 別緊張，慢慢來”或者“輕松輕松，休息”。

Dialogue Script 2 對話原文 2 　

Helen: Are you all ready for Christmas?
Peter: Are you kidding? I haven't even started. I've done zero shopping.
Helen: Well, you'd better get going. Christmas is only a week away.
Peter: I have to tell you that I'm one of those people who really gets stressed out by the Christmas rush.
Helen: Oh, I'm not. I love the holiday. I love the crowd, the shopping, the lights, the music, the food, the parties and all the presents.
Peter: That's just the beginning. My wife always spends too much money on Christmas. Takes me till April to pay off all our Christmas bills.
Helen: Now Peter, didn't you use to love Christmas when you were a kid? I know, maybe Christmas is for kids.
Peter: Well, kids enjoy it because they don't have to do all the shopping and pay all the bills.
Helen: Maybe that's true. But you know as well as I do, that Christmas is more than tinsel and trees. Christmas is about what's in your heart and how you can make others happy.
Peter: You're absolutely right, Helen. I'm going to try harder to be nice to people and try to keep the true spirit of Christmas in my heart.
Helen: I'm glad to hear that, Peter.

講解：

1. Are you all ready for Christmas? 是說“你準備好過圣誕節了嗎？”，all這里有強調的作用，表示“完全，全部”。Peter完全不以為然，他還沒有開始準備過圣誕節呢。I haven't even started. I've done zero shopping. 我還沒有開始，什么東西都沒買呢。大家都知道，do shopping，是“購物”的意思，那么do zero shopping就是什么東西都沒有買的意思。

2. 為了慶祝圣誕節，西方許多家庭往往一進入12月份就開始忙著采購各種節日用品和圣誕食物及禮品等。在12月24日這天晚上，全家人一般都要相聚在一起舉行圣誕晚餐。餐宴餐桌上的食品種類繁多，豐富多彩，而其中最主要的一道菜就是必不可少的傳統佳肴——烤火雞。在西方人眼里，沒有烤火雞的晚餐就算不上是圣誕晚餐。圣誕晚餐之后，人們還要上禮拜堂報告佳音，并為唱詩班預備糖果點心等。但是，為所有這一切做準備是一個非常費心費力費時間的過程。

3. 所以Helen建議Peter抓緊為圣誕節做準備，因為還有一周就是圣誕節樂。you'd better get going. Christmas is only a week away. get going是一個習慣用語，表示“開始行動”。

4. 但Peter卻告訴Helen他在圣誕節的時候總是被購物狂潮搞的筋疲力盡。be stressed out，由于做某事而筋疲力盡，the Christmas rush，就是圣誕節的購物狂潮。rush這個詞在這里表示“匆忙或激烈的行動，做某事的熱潮”，大家一定聽說過gold rush這個詞組，就是指淘金熱潮。

5. Helen很喜歡過圣誕節，她說她喜歡圣誕節的一切，包括購物，彩燈，音樂，禮物等等。可是Peter認為這只是噩夢的開始。因為他的妻子為圣誕節花了太多的錢，要到四月份他才能付清所有的賬單，所以他才會被購物狂潮搞的筋疲力盡。pay off 還清(債務等)，付清。

6. Helen聽Peter對圣誕節有如此多的抱怨，就好奇地問他，didn't you use to love Christmas when you were a kid?你小時候不喜歡過圣誕節嗎？used to do something，表示“過去經常做某事”。 因為Helen也認為圣誕節是孩子們的節日。

7. Peter說孩子們喜歡過圣誕節是因為他們不用為圣誕節購物，也不用付所有的賬單。的確，大人們過節的時候會比小孩子有更多的煩惱。Helen說，雖然過圣誕節費時費力，但是圣誕節并不僅僅是亮片裝飾和圣誕樹，Christmas is more than tinsel and trees. Christmas is about what's in your heart and how you can make others happy. 圣誕節代表了你心中的希望和你怎樣能使別人開心。

8. Peter 認為Helen說的很對，所以他下定決心要對別人更好一點，并且把圣誕節的精神長留心中。的確，過圣誕節并不只是吃吃喝喝，互贈禮物，最重要的就是把圣誕節的精神流傳下去。