Christmas Day
Christmas Day falls on the twenty-fifth of December. It is a very happy day for many boys and girls. Before the term ends in some schools, the children act a nativity or “birth” play, showing how Jesus was born in a stable.
12月25日是圣诞节。对许多男孩和女孩来说,这天是个非常开心的日子。在某些学校,学期结束前,孩子们会表演有关(耶稣)诞生或出生的戏剧,用来(向大家)展示耶稣是如何在马厩里出生的。
On the twenty-fourth of December, all children are very excited. Usually they are sent to bed early so that their parents can get the presents ready. The younger children think that Father Christmas will come down the chimney or fireplace, so they hang up a sock for him to put presents in. The greedy ones even hang up a pillow-case or a sack to try to get more presents. Later that night, father or mother will put presents in the sock, and leave others at the side of the bed.
在12月24日这天,所有的小孩都很兴奋。他们常常被(父母)早早地赶上床去睡觉,以便他们的父母能准备好礼物。年幼一点的小孩认为圣诞老人将从烟囱或壁炉里下来,所以他们挂起袜子,方便圣诞老人把礼物放进去。有些贪心的人,为了能得到更多的礼物,甚至把枕套或布袋挂起来。晚一些时候,爸爸或妈妈将礼物放进袜子,并把其他礼物放在(孩子们的)床边。
On Christmas morning, the children wake up very early. Some even turn on the light at two o'clock, and most of them are awake by six o'clock, and the young ones play while the dinner is prepared. At about one o'clock in the afternoon, the Christmas dinner is brought in. The turkey or chicken is quickly eaten. Children search in their Christmas pudding for new coins which are hidden in it. The rest of the day is full of games and eating until the happiest of all Christmas holidays comes to an end.
圣诞节的早上,小孩们很早就醒来了。一些人甚至在凌晨两点开灯,但大多数小孩会在六点醒来,孩子们在(大人们)准备晚餐的时候玩耍。下午一点,圣诞大餐出炉了。火鸡或鸡腿总是很快被抢光。孩子们寻找着属于他们的圣诞布丁是为了确认金币是否有藏在里面。在剩余的时间里,(人们)便是玩游戏和吃食物直到最开心幸福的圣诞节结束。
Merry Christmas
It was one of the last days before Christmas, and the as sistants in the large store had their hands full serving eager Christmas shoppers.
At one counter an old lady was choosing gloves red ones for her daugher in law, light blue ones for her niece, pink ones for her grand daughter, green ones for her sister and by the time she had found what she wanted, the counter was covered with pairs of all colors and sizes。
When the salesgirl had finally written out the bill and was about to turn to the next customer with a tired voice. "Thank you very much, madam," the old lady suddenly cried out, "Oh, I almost forgot..."——"Anything else, madam?" said the girl, "Yes," began the old lady, "I'd like to buy another pair, but I' m not quite sure about what exactly I should cloose. I wonder if you could help me." "Certainly, madam", was the girl's reply. The old lady then went on to explain that what she was looking for was a pair of gloves for a girl of her age. She was not at ail sure what color to choose, and the design was a problem too。
The tired girl did her best to help the old lady make up her mind, showing her ail kinds of gloves。
At last the chosen pair of gloves were wrapped up and paid for as well, and as the girl was about to turn to the next customer, the old lady handed her a little parcel and said, "These now, dear, these are for you and thank you for being so patient. I do hope you have a merry Christmas !"