环球英语 — 88：The Little Match Girl

　　Voice 1
Hello. I’m Christy Van Arragon.
Voice 2
And I’m Marina Santee. Welcome to Spotlight¹. This programme uses a special English method of broadcasting. It is easier for people to understand, no matter where in the world they live.
Voice 3
‘Matches! Light your fires with my matches! Would you like to buy some matches sir? What about you madam? They are the best kind! Strike them against any wall! They will burn! Someone must want some matches - anyone?’
Voice 2
A small girl walks through the streets. She is cold and hungry. Where can she find help on a cold winter’s day? The Little Match Girl is a popular story. Children’s writer Hans Christian² Anderson wrote it. People like to re-tell the story during the Christmas season. Both adults and children enjoy it. Here is Ruby³ Jones with the Little Match Girl.
Voice 4
A cold wind blows across the town. People hurry along, holding their warm coats close to their bodies. It is a cold winter! They will be happy to get home to their warm fires and nice food! Street sellers⁴ count their money at the end of the day. But for the little match girl, there is no money to count. No one wants to buy her matches. So, she is afraid to go home. Her father will beat her for sure!
The little girl walks across the street. The snow falls on her long hair. She looks up at the tall beautiful houses as she passes. She can hear people laughing inside. The smell of food cooking rises in the air. The people are preparing their last meal before the New Year. The little match girl walks to a quiet street corner. She sits down, holding her knees. She tries to pull her feet under her body. They are so cold. She has no shoes, or coat. Her feet are blue from walking on the cold ground. Maybe she should go home? But even her home is not warm. She lives in a poor house.
The little girl puts her head in her hands. A tear wets the side of her face. If only she could be warm - for just a minute. Then, she has an idea - matches! She has her matches!
Her father would be angry if she wasted any matches. But, she only wants one, just one. Maybe it will warm her freezing fingers. The little girl reaches into her clothes pocket and gets a match. She strikes it against the wall - fire! The warm orange light shines in the darkness. The little girl looks hard at the small dancing fire. Her mind wonders. She imagines that she is sitting by a warm cooking oven⁵. It seems so real! She can see the oven. She can feel its heat. She stretches her legs, and warms her feet. How the fire burns! Then, the fire from the match goes out. The oven disappears. The little girl is once again in the cold darkness. Only the half burnt match remains⁶ in her hand.
The little match girl is so sad. Her happiness had come and gone so quickly. Maybe she could burn one more match? She takes another. And she strikes it against the wall. Fire lights up her sad face. She smiles. This time, she sees the wall become thin. It is almost like paper! She can see through it! Behind it, she sees a room. She puts her hand to her mouth in wonder! Such beauty! There is a huge shiny⁷ table. Hot food lies on it! Her mouth waters! She can almost taste the hot food! She reaches out for a little to feed her hungry stomach. But suddenly the fire from the match goes out! Once more, everything disappears! Only the grey wall remains before her.
So the little girl strikes another match. The golden⁸ fire burns again. This time, she is under a huge Christmas tree! Beautiful bells and flowers hang from the tree. Lights shine from its green branches. It is the most beautiful tree she has ever seen! A light falls from the tree. She starts to think of her dead grandmother. She misses her so much! Then, the match goes out. Without thinking, the little girl lights another match.
This time, standing⁹ in the light, she sees her grandmother! She looks beautiful. The little girl cries. Her grandmother was the only person who ever showed her love. ‘Grandmother! Take me with you! I know when the fire goes out you will disappear! Please take me with you!’ The little girl takes all the matches. One by one she strikes them against the wall. She burns them quickly, so the picture does not disappear. The light shines brighter and brighter. She sees her grandmother more clearly. The little girl reaches out to her grandmother. Her grandmother stretches out her arms to receive the little girl.
The following morning the sun shines on the white, icy¹⁰ road. Only a few people walk on the quiet streets. Suddenly they stop at the street corner. They see a small body on the ground. It is a little girl. She is surrounded by matches.
“Poor thing. She was trying to keep warm,” the people commented.
But no one knew the beauty she saw on the night of New Year’s Eve. And no one knew the greater beauty she saw now, with her grandmother - in a place without hunger or pain. She had found love.
Voice 1
The little match girl is a popular story at Christmas time! It is an imaginary¹¹ story. But people see many messages in it. Some people say the little match girl makes them think about people who have less than them. They think about people who may be poor or lonely at Christmas. The story encourages them to help those in need.
Voice 2
Other people see a message behind the pictures in the story. The little match girl liked all the pictures she saw. But the picture she wanted to stay with her was the one of her grandmother. This was the only one that offered a different kind of happiness - love.
Voice 1
Unconditional¹² love is another message some people see in the story. The grandmother represents¹³ a love that does not die. This love carries the little girl to a place without pain or suffering. This makes some people think about God’s love and heaven - especially at Christmas time. They think of Jesus’ unconditional love to the world. And they think of his love that will carry them to a better place one day - heaven.
 

1 spotlight   

n.公众注意的中心，聚光灯，探照灯，视听，注意，醒目

参考例句：

• This week the spotlight is on the world of fashion.本周引人瞩目的是时装界。
• The spotlight followed her round the stage.聚光灯的光圈随着她在舞台上转。

2 Christian   

adj.基督教徒的；n.基督教徒

参考例句：

• They always addressed each other by their Christian name.他们总是以教名互相称呼。
• His mother is a sincere Christian.他母亲是个虔诚的基督教徒。

3 ruby   

n.红宝石，红宝石色

参考例句：

• She is wearing a small ruby earring.她戴着一枚红宝石小耳环。
• On the handle of his sword sat the biggest ruby in the world.他的剑柄上镶有一颗世上最大的红宝石。

4 sellers   

n.卖者( seller的名词复数 )；卖方；销售者；销售商

参考例句：

• buyers and sellers transacting business 进行交易的买方和卖方
• All manner of hawkers and street sellers were plying their trade. 形形色色的沿街小贩都在做着自己的买卖。 来自《简明英汉词典》

5 oven   

n.烤炉；烤箱

参考例句：

• You put food inside an oven to cook it.你把食物放进烤箱里热一下。
• She baked bread in an oven.她用烤炉烤面包。

6 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
• The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。

7 shiny   

adj.有光泽的，发光的，辉煌的

参考例句：

• What shiny shoes you're wearing!你穿的鞋子擦得真亮啊！
• All the cups are clean and shiny.所有的杯子都很干净明亮。

8 golden   

adj.金的，含金的，可贵的，金色的，贵重的，繁盛的

参考例句：

• My teacher is an Englishman with golden hair.我的老师是一个金黄色头发的英国人。
• It's a balmy evening,the golden time for lovers.这是一个暖和的夜晚，是恋人们的黄金时光。

9 standing   

n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的

参考例句：

• After the earthquake only a few houses were left standing.地震过后只有几幢房屋还立着。
• They're standing out against any change in the law.他们坚决反对对法律做任何修改。

10 icy   

adj.寒冷的；冰冷的

参考例句：

• Father will not chance driving on the icy roads.父亲不愿意冒险在结冰的道路上开车。
• She fixed her questioner with an icy glare.她冷冷地盯着审问者。

11 imaginary   

adj.想象中的，假想的，虚构的，幻想的；虚数的

参考例句：

• All the characters in this book are imaginary.此书中的所有人物都是虚构的。
• The boy's fears were only imaginary.这小孩的恐惧只是一种想象。

12 unconditional   

adj.无条件的，无限制的，绝对的

参考例句：

• The victorious army demanded unconditional surrender.胜方要求敌人无条件投降。
• My love for all my children is unconditional.我对自己所有孩子的爱都是无条件的。

13 Represents   

v.表现( represent的第三人称单数 )；代表；体现；作为…的代表

参考例句：

• This represents a volte-face in government thinking. 这代表着政府观点的彻底转变。
• The Russian Revolution represents a landmark in world history. 俄国革命是世界历史上的一个里程碑。 来自《简明英汉词典》