【美联英语】双语阅读：西方重要节日介绍

第一篇：【美联英语】双语阅读：西方重要节日介绍

小编给你一个美联英语官方免费试听课申请链接： http://m.meten.com/test/waijiao.aspx?tid=16-73675-0 美联英语提供：西方重要节日介绍

Valentine's Day is a saints day commemorating Saint Valentine on February 14.It is the traditional day on which lovers express their love for each other.The holiday is named after two men, both Christian martyrs among the numerous Early Christian martyrs named Valentine.The day became associated with romantic love in the circle of Geoffrey Chaucer in High Middle Ages, when the tradition of courtly love flourished.2.Easter, Pascha, or Resurrection Day, is an important religious feast in the Christian liturgical year.It celebrates the resurrection of Jesus, which Christians believe occurred on the third day after his crucifixion some time in the period AD 27 to 33.3.In the United States, Thanksgiving or Thanksgiving Day is an annual one-day holiday to give thanks to God,for the things one has at the end of the harvest season.It is celebrated on the fourth Thursday of November(The period from Thanksgiving Day to New Year's Day is often collectively referred to as the “holiday season,” and the holiday itself is often nicknamed Turkey Day.Thanksgiving is

generally considered a secular holiday, and is not directly based in religious canon or dogma.4.Christmas, also referred to as Christmas Day or Christmastide, is an annual holiday falling on December 25 or January 6.[1] that honors and celebrates the birth of Jesus of Nazareth.His birth, which is the basis for the transcultural Western calendar, has been determined by modern historians as having occurred between 8–4 BC, and is traditionally told to have taken place in a stable within the city of Bethlehem.5.Halloween, or Hallowe'en, is a holiday celebrated on the night of October 31.Traditional activities include trick-or-treating, bonfires, costume parties, visiting “haunted houses” and carving jack-o-lanterns.The term Halloween(and its alternative rendering Hallowe'en)is shortened from All-hallow-even, as it is the eve of “All Hallows' Day”,[1] which is now also known as All Saints' Day.Irish and Scottish immigrants carried versions of the tradition to North America in the nineteenth century.Other western countries embraced the holiday in the late twentieth century.Halloween is celebrated in several parts of the Western world, most commonly in Ireland, the United States, Canada, Puerto Rico and the United Kingdom and occasionally in parts of Australia and New Zealand.6.Mother's Day is a day honoring mothers, celebrated on various days in many

places around the world.Mothers often receive gifts on this day.7.Father's Day is a secular celebration inaugurated in the early twentieth century to complement Mother's Day in celebrating fatherhood and parenting by males, and to honor and commemorate fathers and forefathers.Father's Day is celebrated on a variety of dates worldwide and typically involves gift-giving to fathers and family-oriented activities.8.April Fools' Day or All Fools' Day, though not a holiday in its own right, is a notable day celebrated in many countries on April 1.The day is marked by the commission of hoaxes and other practical jokes of varying sophistication on friends, enemies and neighbors, or sending them on fools' errands, the aim of which is to embarrass the gullible.In some countries, April Fools' jokes(also called “April Fools”)are only made before noon on 1 April.情人节是2月14日纪念圣瓦伦丁的圣徒纪念日。这是情侣们表达爱意的传统节日。这个节日是以两个人的名字命名的,这两个人都是基督教殉道者,名字叫情人节。在中世纪的杰弗里乔叟的圈子里,这一天成为与浪漫爱情有关的一天,当宫廷的爱情传统蓬勃发展。.复活节, pascha,或复活日,是基督教礼拜式的的一个重要的宗教节日。它庆祝耶稣复活,基督徒相信耶稣在公元27到33间耶稣受难的第三天发生。

3.在美国,感恩节或感恩节是一个每年一天的节日,感谢上帝,因为在收获季节的结束。在11月的第四个星期四(从感恩节到元旦这段时间通常被统称为“假日季”),节日本身通常被称为“火鸡日”。感恩节通常被认为是一个世俗的节日,并不直接基于宗教教规或教条。.圣诞节,也称为圣诞节或christmastide,是一个年度假日,12月25日或1月6日。[ 1]这种荣誉和庆祝拿撒勒的耶稣诞生。他的出生是跨文化的西方日历的基础,现代历史学家认为他的出生在公元前8之间,传统上被告知在伯利恒市一个马厩进行。.万圣节,或万圣节,是一个节日庆祝在10月31日。传统的活动包括恶作剧或治疗,篝火,化装舞会,参观“鬼屋”和雕刻杰克灯。万圣节(和它的替代渲染万圣节)是缩短从所有的万圣节,因为它是“万圣节”前夕,现在也被称为万圣节。爱尔兰人和苏格兰移民在19世纪把传统带到了北美。其他西方国家接受了二十世纪后期的假期。在西方世界的一些地方庆祝万圣节,最常见的是在爱尔兰、美国、加拿大、波多黎各和英国,偶尔也在澳大利亚和新西兰部分地区。.母亲节是纪念母亲的一天,在世界上许多地方的许多地方庆祝。母亲们经常在这天收到礼物。.父亲节是在二十世纪早期开始的一个世俗的庆祝活动,旨在补充母亲庆祝父亲和父母养育子女的日子,以及纪念和纪念父亲和祖先。父亲节是在全世界各种日期庆祝的,通常涉及给父亲的礼物和家庭导向的活动。

8.愚人节或所有傻瓜天,虽然不是自己的权利,是一个值得注意的一天在许多国家庆祝4月1日。这一天的标志是,恶作剧委员会和其他关于朋友、敌人和邻居复杂程度的恶作剧,或者把他们送到愚人的差使上,目的是为了让轻信的人难堪。在一些国家,愚人节的笑话(也称为“愚人节”)仅在4月1日中午之前制作。

第二篇：【美联英语】双语阅读：青春

小编给你一个美联英语官方免费试听课申请链接： http://m.meten.com/test/waijiao.aspx?tid=16-73675-0 美联英语提供：青春

Let's take steps to banish some of the most common negative thoughts many of us repeat to ourselves.Being in a negative space is harmful to our overall well-being, because what you dwell on can easily become self fulfilling if you don't change your mindset.让我们一起行动起来，消灭那些我们经常告诉自己的消极想法吧!如果你不改变想法，而是一味地沉浸在消极的念头中，那么，我们的整个身心就会受到影响，因为“噩梦”也会成真。

1.I'm not good enough.我不够好。

This type of negative thought that can apply to many categories.Maybe you don't think you're a good enough mother or good at a sport.Even if you find yourself lacking in something, there's no need to keep repeating it to yourself.The human brain is an incredible thing.Be inspired by Dr.Jill Bolte Taylor, Harvard-trained neuroscientist who suffered a stroke that left her unable to walk, read, write, talk, or remember her previous life.Dr.Taylor took eight years to recover and has since then written a best-selling book about her experience and appeared on Oprah.Keep on working toward something, and watch the leaps and

bounds you'll make.这种消极想法有很多类型。比如你认为自己不是个称职的妈妈或不擅长运动。即使你真的发现了自己的弱点，也没必要对自己不断复述。人脑是神奇的。吉尔泰勒就是个激励的好典型，她是哈佛大学的神经系统学专家，中风后她就失去了行走、阅读、书写、交谈的能力了，甚至还失忆了。她花了八年的时间复原，用自己的经历写了畅销书，还上了奥普拉的节目。坚持做一件事，亲眼见证自己的变化。

2.No one cares about me.没人关心我。

To accurately say that your family and friends don't care about you would be a very rare situation.Maybe you're being too negative and overlooking the gestures of love they show you.They don't even have to be big gestures, but it's the little things they do for you that count.And people may be reacting to the energy you're putting out;perhaps you think they don't care about you so you don't make any effort in your relationships.Start showing people you care, so they can show you back in kind.And if you don't have good relationships with the people you know, what's stopping you from making new friends?

家人朋友都不关心你，这种情况其实不太常见。可能你过于消极的想法使你忽略了他们对你表达的爱。他们甚至并不需要为你做什么惊天动地的大事，正是一些小事才真正打动人心。或者你觉得没人关心你，所以无需再经营人际关系，但其实也许人们只有在感知到你的付出后，才会对你进行回报;关心别人，别人才会关心你。如果你和周围人的关系处理不好，为何不结交些新朋友?

3.I really dislike this person.我真的不喜欢这个人。

If you dislike a person in your work or personal life, focusing on her bad qualities is not going to make things better.You need to let go of your assumptions about her and know that she is human too, which means she makes mistakes.Either you move on and stop thinking and talking about her, or learn to approach her or think about her in a positive manner.Focus on her good qualities, and repeat them to yourself instead of honing in on the unpleasant things.如果工作或生活中有你讨厌的人，只关注她的缺点有害无益。你需要放下对她的所有成见，告诉自己她也是个人，也有犯错的时候。要么就不再谈论她和想着她，要么学着去接近她，或想想她好的一面。多想想她的优点，不要再专注于让你不开心的事情。

4.Why is she better off?

为什么她比我好?

Comparing yourself to someone else is never productive or positive.There's always going to be someone who is younger, prettier, smarter, or richer than you.If you keep coveting what someone else has, then this may cause you to be resentful of them, which will open a whole other negative can of worms.Remember, what they don't have is your whole package.Be appreciative of what you have, because if you want to play the comparison game, remember that there are people who are also worse off than you are.和别人比较永远不是有效率和积极的表现。总有比你年轻，漂亮，聪明，富有的人。如果你始终关注别人拥有什么，会带来你对他们的恨意，随即带来更多消极的想法。记住，你所拥有的也是他们所没有的。珍惜你所拥有的东西，如果真的想和别人比较，也别忘了总有

比你差的人。

5.I'll never reach my goal.我永远无法达到目标。

If you think you're not going to be able “get there,” think again.There are many people who are worse off and have overcome bigger obstacles than what you are facing.Take, for example, Olympic sprinter Oscar Pistorius, an amputee who overcame his handicap to compete in the Olympics against his able-bodied peers.Everything is within your reach as long as you work hard and have a a positive attitude.如果你认为自己达不到，再想想。比你差的人比比皆是，他们遇到的困难也比你的更大。比如，奥运会短跑选手刀锋战士奥斯卡·皮斯托利斯，一个被截肢的运动员，战胜了自己的阻碍，在其他健壮的对手中脱颖而出赢得了奥运会的冠军。只要你努力付出，有着积极的信念，任何事都能够做到。

第三篇：【美联英语】双语阅读：玛格丽特

小编给你一个美联英语官方免费试听课申请链接： http://m.meten.com/test/waijiao.aspx?tid=16-73675-0 美联英语提供：玛格丽特•撒切尔

Margaret Thatcher, Britain’s longest-serving and only woman prime minister, has died aged 87 after suffering a stroke, prompting a flood of tributes from across the globe.玛格丽特?撒切尔(Margaret Thatcher)因中风去世，享年87岁，在世界各地引发了一阵哀悼浪潮。撒切尔是英国任职最长的首相，也是唯一的女首相。

Leaders lined up to pay their respects to the former prime minister, who revolutionised the UK economy during an 11-year tenure, as she rolled back the state and put in place some of the country’s most radical and controversial reforms.各国领导人纷纷向这位英国前首相表达敬意。在其长达11年的任期中，撒切尔领导了英国经济的革命，缩减了政府职能，并实施了该国最为激进、最有争议的一些改革。

David Cameron, UK prime minister, described the former Conservative prime minister as the “greatest peacetime prime minister”.英国现首相戴维?卡梅伦(David Cameron)把这位前保守党首相称为“英国和平时期最伟大的首相”。

“[She] took a country that was on its knees and made Britain stand tall again.We can’t deny that Lady Thatcher divided opinion.For many of us, she was and is

an inspiration.For others she was a force to be defined against.卡梅伦表示：“(她)临危受命，让英国重新站起来，再度屹立。不可否认，人们对她的评价各异。在我们许多人看来，她过去和现在都是一位鼓舞人心的人物。在其他人看来，她是一种特色鲜明的力量。

“But if there is one thing that cuts through all of this – one thing that runs through everything she did – it was her lion-hearted love for this country,” he said.“但如果说有一个中心贯穿着她的一生——在她所做的每一件事中都体现出来，那就是她对这个国家的无比热爱。”

President Barack Obama said: “The world has lost one of the great champions of freedom and liberty, and America has lost a true friend.”

美国总统巴拉克?奥巴马(Barack Obama)表示：“世界失去了一位积极倡导自由的领袖，美国失去了一位真正的朋友。”

The prime minister’s office announced that parliament would be recalled for a special session on Wednesday to pay tribute to Thatcher.Her funeral will be held at the end of next week at St Paul’s Cathedral.英国首相办公室宣布，周三议会将召开一次特别会议，向撒切尔致哀。她的葬礼将于下周末在伦敦圣保罗大教堂(St Paul's Cathedral)举行。

She will have a “full ceremonial funeral” with military honours as was afforded to the Queen Mother and Lady Diana.The British flag flew at half mast over Parliament to honour Thatcher as all UK political parties suspended campaigning for the local elections on May 2.撒切尔将享有带有军事礼仪的“礼仪葬礼”，礼遇同王太后和戴安娜一样。英国国会降半旗向撒切尔致哀，各政党暂停针对5月2日地方选举的竞选活动。

Thatcher, who transformed Britain with her free-market revolution, had been in poor health since suffering minor strokes in 2002.自从2002年患上中风以来，撒切尔的健康状况一直很差。她曾以自己的自由市场革命改变了英国的面貌。

Statesmen past and present shared their memories of the woman dubbed the “Iron Lady”.Tony Blair, the second longest-serving postwar prime minister, called her “a towering political figure”.“Very few leaders get to change not only the political landscape of their country but of the world.Margaret was such a leader.Her global impact was vast.”

已卸任和在任的政治家们共同悼念有“铁娘子”绰号的撒切尔。英国战后任期第二长的首相托尼布莱尔(Tony Blair)称撒切尔为“一位伟大的政治人物。”“不但改变本国政治版图、还改变世界政治版图的领袖人物非常少，撒切尔就是其中的一位。她在全球播下了深远的影响。”

George W.Bush, former US president, described her as a “great ally” who “strengthened the special relationship”.美国前总统小布什(George W.Bush)称撒切尔为一位“强化了美英特殊关系的伟大盟友”。

Thatcher had a particularly close relationship with Ronald Reagan, the former US president.撒切尔与美国前总统罗纳德?里根(Ronald Reagan)之间保持了一种极为密切的关系。

With Reagan, she helped bring about the end of the Soviet Union and the fall of the Berlin Wall.The British prime minister saw herself as the perfect intermediary between the two countries, having struck up constructive relationships with both Reagan and Mikhail Gorbachev, the Soviet president, and a man with whom she told Reagan “we can do business”.她和里根一道促成了苏联的解体和柏林墙的倒塌。这位英国前首相把自己视为美苏两国间的完美中间人，与里根和苏联总统米哈伊尔?戈尔巴乔夫(Mikhail Gorbachev)都建立了富有建设意义的关系。她告诉里根，戈尔巴乔夫是一个“我们能和他打交道”的人。

Mr Gorbachev said Thatcher helped end the Cold War: “Thatcher was a politician whose word carried great weight,” he said in a statement on his website.“Our first meeting in 1984 marked the beginning of a relationship that was at times difficult, not always smooth, but was treated seriously and responsibly by both sides.”

戈尔巴乔夫在自己网站上发布的声明中表示，撒切尔帮助结束了冷战：“撒切尔是一位一言九鼎的政治家。我们在1984年第一次会面，随后便开启了一段时而棘手、并非一帆风顺但双方都认真负责予以对待的关系。”

Lech Walesa, Poland’s former president and anti-communist freedom figure, said Thatcher was key in hastening the fall of the Iron Curtain: “She was a great person.She did a great deal for the world, along with Ronald Reagan, Pope John Paul II and Solidarity, she contributed to the demise of communism in Poland and central Europe.”

波兰前总统、反对共产主义的自由派人士列赫?瓦文萨(Lech Walesa)表示，撒切尔在加

速“铁幕”(Iron Curtain)倒塌的过程中发挥了关键的作用：“她是一位伟人。她为世界做出了巨大的贡献，她与罗纳德?里根、教皇约翰?保罗二世(Pope John Paul II)和波兰团结工会(Solidarity)一起，推动了波兰与中欧共产主义政权的终结。”

Her other great success abroad was in the Falklands War against Argentina, which invaded the islands in 1982.Thatcher defied resistance in her own cabinet to send a 25,000-strong task force to the tiny archipelago, which troops eventually recaptured after two months.撒切尔在海外的其他巨大胜利，还包括1982年的英阿福克兰群岛战争(Falklands war，又称马岛战争)。她不顾自己内阁的反对，向面积微小的福克兰群岛派出了2.5万人的特遣部队，最终于两个月后夺回了该群岛。

Her legacy was just as long-lasting at home.A succession of prime ministers, Labour and Conservative alike, have felt unable or unwilling to depart from the blueprint she established of a state serviced by privatised utilities and free of the stranglehold of organised unions.撒切尔在国内留下的遗产同样意义深远。历任首相，无论出自工党还是保守党，都感到不能或不愿背离她为英国设定的蓝图——公用事业私有化，企业不受有组织工会的钳制。

第四篇：【美联英语】双语阅读：最好的圣诞礼物

小编给你一个美联英语官方免费试听课申请链接： http://m.meten.com/test/waijiao.aspx?tid=16-73675-0 美联英语提供：最好的圣诞礼物

I have received many Christmas gifts over the years.The best gift I ever received was presented to me by a stranger.I never even knew his name and I only had contact with him for less than 60 seconds.His Christmas present to me changed the way I think about people and about Christmas.这些年我收到过很多圣诞礼物，其中最好的礼物来自一个陌生人。我不曾知道他的名字，我俩之间沟通不到60秒。他送我的圣诞礼物改变了我对别人和圣诞节的看法。

I hate Black Friday sales.It's often a gathering of people who are there for many different reasons.Some are looking for a deal on that one item for their loved one, or perhaps themselves.Their intentions are completely unrelated to the festive time of year, and can merely be summed up with one word, “EBay!”

我讨厌黑色星期五的特卖，总有很多人因为很多不同的原因聚在一起。有些人是为所爱的人或者可能为自己买东西。他们的目的都跟一年一度的节日一点关系都没有，只能总结为一个词：“便宜”！

It was several years ago when my wife asked me to meet her at the local department store on Black Friday morning.They had advertised a child's bike that she wanted to purchase for our son.We stood with a very large crowd, waiting for the manager to blow the whistle.After a while the whistle blew.It was like throwing a bucket of chum into a tank of sharks.I told my wife that if we obtained a bike, fine, but if we did not, I was OK with that too.几年前妻子让我在“黑五”早上和她在当地百货公司门口会和，他们正在特价销售一款儿童自行车，她想买给我们的儿子。还有一大群人站在那儿等着经理吹哨。过了一会，哨声响起，当时的场景就像一桶三文鱼被扔进了鲨鱼水箱里。我跟妻子说如果我们抢到自行车还好，如果没抢到我也无所谓。

As the pallet of bikes began to gradually decrease in size, I saw my polite opportunity to wrap my hands around the corner of one of the boxes.I lifted it off the crate and suddenly felt some mild resistance.I looked up to see one of the largest gentlemen I had ever seen in my life.Intimidating was not the word to describe his presence.He was adorned with numerous straps of metal spiked leather around both arms and even his neck.Tattoos were an obvious passion of his.货架上的自行车越来越少，我看到了一个“文雅”的机会，把手伸到了一个自行车包装盒的角上，把盒子拎了起来，突然感觉到有人轻轻地阻止我。我抬头看见了平生所见的最

高大的人，“吓人”这个词已经不足以形容他了。他胳膊上甚至脖子上满是带有铆钉的皮带子，很明显纹身是他的最爱。

I started to relinquish the box but he gently pushed it back in my direction and back into my hands.He then directed it into my shopping cart.He looked at me, smiled, and said, “Merry Christmas.”My wife and I went to the checkout, paid for the bike and went home.All the way home I was thinking that this moment was by far the best Christmas gift I had ever received.The kindness of a stranger that broke all preconceived notions I may have had of stereotypes and prejudices.The tenderness of a human heart in a simple act.I will never forget it.我想把盒子放回去，但他从他的方向轻轻把自行车推了回来，又推回到我手里，然后直接放进了我的购物车里，他看着我微笑着说：“圣诞节快乐”。妻子和我去了收款处，付完钱就回家了。回家的一路上我都在想那一刻是至今我收到的最好的圣诞礼物。一个陌生人的善良打破了我所有对于成见和偏见原有的看法，人内心的柔软就体现在小小的行为上，我永远不会忘记这次经历。

第五篇：【美联英语】双语阅读：人像一棵果树

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Once, while taking my boat down the inland waterway to Florida, I decided to tie up at Georgetown, South Carolina, for the night and visit with an old friend.As we approached the Esso dock, I saw him through my binoculars standing there awaiting us.Tall and straight as an arrow he stood, facing a cold, penetrating windhave finished the course-I have kept the faith.对我而言，它是最初的记忆，也是始终的挑战。实际上，对每个人来说，人生之役，生存之役，都是一种挑战。圣.保罗不朽的教诲，也一直并将永远鼓舞着我。但愿，在到达生命之途的终点时，我能够认为自己打了漂亮的一仗，不仅走完了人生的旅程，而且一如既往地坚持着自己的信仰。