2014-12-26

【Aiden in English】

        People always put up lights during Christmas. So the streets in the holiday season are brightened like day. And every year, there’re always some people who decide to overdo their decorations. This time, Mr. Jack Yoask, the President of Acteon Networks, made his house and front yard a showcase of lights in Ambler, PA not only for him to have fun but for his community to light up a life. 

        When I first spotted the house and front yard, I was absolutely astonished. The entire property was covered with lights upon lights. It consisted of over 175,000 lights and turned into a splendid rainbow grinded together. There were small paths between the decorations and lights, making the experience close up. 

        Mom and I walked around, inspecting every single light. Mr. Yoask was certainly a fan of Christmas because every piece of the decoration, statue, light, and sign was about Christmas spirit. I saw at least three different reindeer models, each one with a different color. The yard seemed to be a swirl of lights flashing and blinking like a strobe light. There were the Elves playing trumpets, flickered musical notes which floated in the air. Santa Claus not only rode a Harley-Davidson but was on the roof of the house, stuck in the chimney. I differentiated multiple notations from a variety of colors that read “Merry Christmas”, “Merry Christmas”. Little houses lined the sides of the path, just like a miniature village for the little Elves Santa Claus was said to work with. 

        As I continued along the small path, a group of rock star figures appeared around the corner. They looked like professionals sparkled with the shiny lights on their instruments. Right on the other side of the path near the garage sat a little Choo-Choo train. The holiday presents on the train glittered as the wheels turned in circles. And beyond that was a tiny, but brightly lit Eiffel Tower. It was about 3 feet/1 meter tall and twinkled with white lights. As I walked on, a small town came into view. There were a saloon, a store, and a jail, which became kind of surprising. I also liked the sign “North Pole”. The only problem with it right after the sign was the town which sat in the desert with no snow.  Another interesting symbol was remarked “HAPPY BIRTHDAY JESUS!” Nearby it displayed a picture of lights of many people stood in line next to Baby Jesus!

        The holiday season is here, and so are the lights. And it’s better to overdo something like Mr. Yoask than to not do it at all, especially to inspire the community for a good cause after all.

【紅霞譯文】

        聖誕節期間人們喜歡張燈結彩，結果大街小巷燈火通明，宛若白晝一般。更有甚者，每年總有一些人喜歡標新立異，美國阿克坦網絡總裁傑克·尤斯克先生就是其中突出代表，這回他把位於賓州安伯勒小鎮上自家庭院裝點得分外醒目，除了自娛自樂之外，還試圖為社區點亮生活。

        當我第一次目睹現場時，心中不由得為之震撼，偌大塊地到處披紅戴綠閃閃發亮，十七萬五千隻彩燈匯聚成氣蓋山河的彩虹。道具與彩燈之間設有步行小道，以方便來賓近距離觀看。

        我和媽媽閒庭信步，仔細品味設計者的唯美思想。尤斯克先生肯定是一位聖誕信徒，否則絕不會將每件道具、每位雕塑、每束光線、每個標誌都賦予聖誕精神，並且在我看到至少三套不同的馴鹿模型里，彼此顏色各異。這麼一來，整個庭院時時泛起生生波浪：小精靈們吹着小號，音符在空中飄來盪去；聖誕老人既會騎哈雷摩托車，又能爬梯上房被卡在煙囪旁。 “聖誕快樂” 熠熠生輝，“聖誕快樂”閃爍不息。街道兩旁微型房子林立，猶如傳說中幫助聖誕老人的小精靈們生活的迷你村莊。

        我沿着小路往前走，拐角處有一幫搖滾樂手煞有介事地撥弄着流光溢彩的電子樂器；對面靠近車庫的旁邊恰好出現一列“噗─噗”小火車，小火車上運載的節日禮物隨輪胎轉動而呈現五顏六色；小火車背後艾菲爾鐵塔，大約有三英尺／一米高，更是銀光四射。繼續走着走着，眼前出現一座小城，裡面有髮廊、小賣部、監獄，令我大吃一驚。我喜歡“北極”字樣，只不過附近的村落地處缺雪的沙漠，反倒覺得有點背離常理。另一字幅寫着“祝耶穌生日快樂！”周圍華燈齊放，很多人物列隊恭候在聖嬰身旁！

        節日的到來點燃了萬家燈火，像尤斯克先生這樣大張旗鼓地歡慶聖誕要比過於低調什麼都不干強得多，尤其從營造社區積極向上的公益事業出發。