2015-12-27

【Aiden in English】

        The holiday season is not over yet. The Washington DC Temple we visited yesterday was hosting a unique performance at 7 o’clock in the evening and it was famous in the area. Accompanied by dazzlingly decorative lights, it’s called the Festival of Lights and a nice way to end out our Christmas celebrations.

        I fell asleep on my way in. So when it was time to get out of the car, I was stunned. It wasn’t every day that you were way up in a light show. The temple seemed untouched except for some lights shining up at the walls, but the main focus was the part we drove in from and the visitor center. Nearly all the trees that were on the road had colorful lights hung on them, and hundreds of people arrived. The holiday performance started hanging out tickets at six, and everyone was rushing for one. We came early and had my mom’s friend wait in line as we took pictures outside. You may know Mr. Jack Yoask’s house of Christmas lights I wrote about in Ambler of PA last year. Well, this might just have it beat. Multi-colored lights decorated the trees towards the front, and the closer it got to the temple, the more golden lights appeared. It seemed as if the temple was somehow purifying the lights like it would for people. While my mom was searching for the perfect scene that included the temple, I looked around for … anything, really. There were just so many lights, trees, Christmas decors, and people. Finally, mom found a spot for the picture, but it was right behind a passageway to the visitor center. And so, with mom’s stubbornness, we stood there for up to ten minutes. Let me tell you if you’re waiting for a horde of people on Christmas to walk past or notice that you’re taking a photo, it doesn’t work. No one even turned their heads in our direction. A couple even took a picture right in front of us, facing another direction. In conclusion, we went inside with a very unsatisfied mom and a tired me.

        The holiday show started with a video of the importance of the birth of Jesus Christ, and how it became a bridge between us and God. Then, with that said and done, came out a family of musicians. The youngest maybe even ranging to three or four, and they played for us some traditional songs like Joy to the World. The idea was to “touch our hearts” using music, as some things cannot be described with words. The performers invited us to sing through the second repeat, which the audience joined in quite enthusiastically. I just hymned the tune, considering I wasn’t the best with the lyrics. But I must say, there were some extremely talented singers in the crowd.

        Whether you’re celebrating under the Christmas tree, in bed, at a party, or in Maryland, it is a time to be happy, and Christmas, if I know one thing, makes people happy.

【红霞译文】

        圣诞新年假期尚未结束，昨天我们专程前来参观建筑外景的华盛顿特区摩门教圣殿定于今晚7:00举行一场别开生面的文艺表演，此项传统活动早已在当地广为人知。夜幕下的摩门教堂华彩齐放，一年一度的圣诞庆典也将在灯节中落下帷幕。

        来的路上我昏昏欲睡，因此当迈出汽车时，一下子被眼前气势壮观的场景所惊醒，这可不是你每天想看就能看到的东西，除了灯光投影在墙壁之外，教堂本身依旧保持原貌。最引人注目的地方当属介于游客中心与教堂之间的地段，马路两旁几乎所有树木全部披上节日盛装，数以百计的民众纷纷向内进发。下午6:00即开演前一个钟头教堂免费发放当晚演出票，因此人人都赶在同一时间抵达这里。我们来得早，由妈妈的朋友力儿叔叔负责排队领票，其他的几位趁早四处转悠去欣赏外面的夜景。你也许仍然记得去年我曾写过一篇有关宾州安伯勒小镇杰克•尤斯克先生家张灯结彩的纪实报道，与教堂相比，那可真是小巫见大巫。华盛顿特区摩门教圣殿周围一道道彩灯从大树正面扶摇直上，越靠近教堂，越觉得金光闪亮，突出表现神灵的圣洁以及信徒的虔诚。妈妈仔细寻找风水宝地，试图把教堂与夜景一并收入她的摄影镜头，而我则漫无目标，有什么看什么。眼前千灯万盏高树林立，铺天盖地的圣诞装饰与川流不息的人群交织成欢乐的海洋，妈妈好不容易锁定取景角度，可偏巧处在进出游客中心的交通要道背后，她固执己见，愣要寻机拍照，害得我们陪着罚站苦苦等候达十分钟之久。要我说，圣诞节期间像这样繁忙的地段欲求空无一人，哪怕仅有按快门那么短暂的瞬间，都是白日做梦，过往行人非但顾不得瞧你一眼，而且有对夫妇竟无所顾忌地地背对我们站在镜头前面。没辙儿妈妈泱泱离去，我也拖着疲惫的脚步走进大厅。

        节日庆典开始先播放视频，重温耶稣基督诞生的重要性以及祂如何成为我们与上帝之间的桥梁。之后由家庭艺人登台献艺，其中最年轻的演员可能仅有三、四岁，他们为我们表演的都是一些像“普世欢腾救主下降”之类的传统曲目，通过音乐旋律来抒发难以用语言表达的情感，藉之打动“观众的心田”。末了，演员们还邀请大家一起高歌第二段重唱部分，观众个个情绪高昂。我不太熟悉歌词，只能跟着轻哼小调，但不得不承认，观众席上确有相当数量的人极富歌唱天赋。

        无论你在圣诞树下、床铺上、聚会中还是马里兰州欢度节日，一定少不了幸福满满，对之我向来坚信不疑，圣诞节是一个普天同乐的大喜日子。