氣質姐與可愛可

A story about the original Santa and his dark follower.
一個關於原始聖誕老人和他的邪惡隨從的故事。
（可按右鍵另存音檔）
　　Saint Nicholas Day is a Christian holiday in Europe that falls on December 6, though some places celebrate on December 19. During this festival, people eat a huge meal, go to church, and young boys dress as priests and give money to the poor. On the night before the holiday, children put out their shoes for Saint Nicholas to put gifts into.
　　Saint Nicholas was a Christian leader who lived in Greece almost two thousand years ago. There are many stories about him performing miracles and secretly giving gifts to those in need, especially to children. Paintings and decorations of Saint Nicholas usually show a tall, old man with a long, white beard who carries a bag full of toys. It is clear from this image that Dutch settlers in America got the idea for Santa Claus from Saint Nicolas. Since then, Santa Claus's popularity has only grown with time.
　　After Santa Claus became the main figure of Christmas, Saint Nicholas Day might have become a mostly forgotten holiday. What has kept the festival going is not Saint Nicholas' miracles or his kindness to children. The new star is the monster that follows Saint Nicolas and punishes the bad children: Krampus.

1. follower n. 跟班，跟隨者
   Sam prefers to be a follower in a group.
   在團體中，山姆比較喜歡當隨從。
2. priest n. 牧師
   The priest blessed me with holy water.
   牧師以聖水來為我祈福。
3. secretly adv. 秘密地，偷偷地
   Hiding in the woods, the soldiers were able to secretly observe the enemy.
   軍人藏身在樹林中，所以能夠秘密觀察敵人。
4. beard n. 鬍子
   Santa Claus has a big, white beard.
   聖誕老公公有一大把白鬍子。
5. settler n. 殖民者；拓荒者
   Peter's grandfather was one of the early settlers of Australia.
   彼得的祖父是澳州早期拓荒者之一。
6. kindness n. 善意，仁慈
   Is there anything I can do in return for your kindness?
   我能做點什麼來回報你的好意嗎？
7. monster n. 怪物
   The witch turned the animal into a monster.
   巫婆把那隻動物變成了怪物。
8. punish vt. 懲罰
   If you never punish your son, he'll never learn to behave properly.
   如果你從不處罰兒子的話，他永遠都不會守規矩。

『創造奇蹟』怎麼說
本文 "There are many stories about him performing miracles and secretly giving gifts to those in need, especially to children." 中的 perform miracles 表『產生奇蹟式的功效或結果』，等於 work miracles / wonders。例：

That medicine seemed to perform miracles by curing the woman of cancer.
（那藥似乎很靈，因為它治好這位女士的癌症。）

Herbal tea works miracles in helping you fall asleep at night.
（花草茶對於幫助夜晚入眠有奇效。）

The ginger tea really worked wonders for my cold. I feel much better now.
（薑茶對我的感冒真有效。我現在感覺好多了。）

聖尼古拉節在歐洲是一個基督教節日，於十二月六日慶祝，雖然有些地方是在十二月十九日慶祝。在這個節日期間，人們會吃一頓大餐、去教堂，而且年輕的男孩們會裝扮成牧師的模樣並拿錢給窮人。在節日的前一天晚上，小孩們會把他們的鞋子放到屋外好讓聖尼古拉能將禮物放進去。

　　聖尼古拉是一位大約兩千年前居住在希臘的基督徒領袖。有許多關於聖尼古拉展現神蹟和偷偷送禮物給尤其是小孩那樣有需要的人的故事。關於聖尼古拉的畫作和裝飾品通常都顯示聖尼古拉是一位高大、年長、有著長白鬍子且會帶著裝滿玩具的袋子的男人。這樣的形象很顯然是荷蘭殖民者在美國時從聖尼古拉得到聖誕老人的主意。從那時起，聖誕老人受歡迎的程度與日俱增。

　　在聖誕老人變成聖誕節主要的人物後，聖尼古拉節或許已經成為一個常被遺忘的節日。使這個節日繼續讓人們記住的因素，不是聖尼古拉的神蹟或是他對小孩的和藹。這個新主角是跟隨聖尼古拉且會懲罰壞孩子的怪物：坎卜斯。

引用自常春藤網路書城https://www.ivy.com.tw/index.php