跨文化的響宴-外語中心聖誕節系列活動

By Armon Nakprasert, Foreign Language Center
As we approach the end of what some may consider to be one of the worst years they have ever experienced, we should reflect and focus on the good things that we have experienced rather than the negative. Perhaps it is because Taiwan did such a great job handling the pandemic crises that most Taiwanese and foreigners living in Taiwan take it for granted that life on our little island, for most of the year, was normal. Things were far from normal for the rest of the world. Especially during the Christmas holiday.
Getting into the Christmas spirit here in Taiwan is not as hard as one might think. Christmas is the most popular and practiced holiday in the world. It seems that everywhere I go in Taipei I see Christmas decorations. I hear holiday music on the radio and in the department stores. You can also find all of these things in my class as I taught my students about the history of Christmas’s origins and customs. I told my student the reason that people bring a fir tree into their homes and decorated it during Christmas. Why parents tell kids about Santa Claus. However, it was not just all study and work, my junior high school students got a chance to make a personalized ornament or Christmas card for their family or friend to spread the Christmas joy. My high school students became competitive as they played Christmas trivia games, in teams, fighting for a prize that all students love. To find out what that prize is, you will have to ask one of my students.
Christmas is also a time for families to make a trip back home for the holidays. Schools and universities will be closed for the “winter break” and will not reopen until the first Monday after New Year’s Day. With the pandemic still going strong in the US, most families have opted to forgo traveling altogether. I loved this time of year when I was in college. Saying goodbye to my friends, as they make their way back to their homes, after school finished, before heading back to my parent to spend the holidays back home. Once home, I would contact my old friends from high school who would also come home for the holidays. We would catch-up and talk about our plans for New Year’s Eve count down. We would exchange gifts and talk about what gifts we got for our family. I would travel around with my family to visit relatives that we have not seen since the previous Christmas. This is no longer the norm with COVID-19 reaching record levels in the US. My brother, who lives and works in Los Angeles, typically will take a vacation from his job and visit our parents and his friends back in Chicago for two weeks (last year he visited me in Taiwan), will have to spend the holidays and his birthday alone this year. My mom, who usually makes pierogis (Polish dumplings – she learned how to cook Polish food from my paternal grandmother) for Christmas and have my dad deliver them to friends and family members has been canceled. Because of COVID-19, I realized how much Christmas in the US-centered around families. Being around family and friends is a great gift to have during the holidays. Wishing everyone and their family a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

◎ 108班 陳嘉妤
Last Thursday, our foreign language teacher, Mr. Armon gave a Christmas lesson and fun activities. In the beginning, we listened to Tr. Armon’s lesson and he told us to go get some crayons and a piece of paper with a Christmas ornament on it. He told us to use our creativity to design our own Christmas decorations. Everyone had their unique design and characteristics. The teacher let us choose to take them home or let Tr. Armon keep it to decorate the classroom. This activity was fun and very interesting. You can take your own work home and decorate it. I hope there will be a similar activity next year !
◎ 303班 游士儀
The time has come, December has arrived, and that means Christmas is around the corner. This holiday is not just a word that is shown on a calendar, but also a time of warm smiles and the spreading of joy. We, as students, have been celebrating Christmas year after year, but this time, we decided to do it differently.
Without exchanging gifts, or building gingerbread houses, sharing snacks, and other cool activities that we have done in the past, we would enjoy Christmas by “creating the holiday” together. We discussed, designed, and decorated the classroom together. Everybody thought of what represents Christmas, drew it on paper, and cut it down. Some planted magical forests, some set up beautiful gifts, and others built lovely snowmen. With everyone’s unique ideas, the classroom was transformed into a wonderful and magical “Christmas world.”
While we were decorating our Christmas world, we were also creating our world of friendship and fun. It felt good to work hard on something with my classmates. All of us completed our work and obtain a strong sense of accomplishment together. It will be one of the most unforgettable memories I have.

◎ 201班 林子馨
“We wish you a merry Christmas and a happy new year.” It’s Christmas! Christmas is a warm holiday filled with smiles and happiness. Christmas always brings people joy. In western countries, people have days off to celebrate this holiday with their family. During Christmas, people decorate the Christmas tree, exchange gifts, and get together. Every place you walk by, you can hear many Christmas songs, which get us into the spirit of this special and touching holiday. As for my class, we celebrate Christmas by decorating our classroom, exchanging Christmas gifts, and preparing gifts for those who cannot spend Christmas with their family. We decorated our classroom’s Christmas tree. We hung dolls and little decorations on it. Of course, the soul of the tree is the big, shining star, we made the star using silver wool sticks. When our Christmas tree lights up, it seems like it’s the shiniest Christmas tree in the whole world. Every time I look at our Christmas tree, I feel that my wishes are going to come true. It’s so bright that all the negativity I feel just fades away! Surely, Christmas is a popular holiday for both adults and children. Now, walk up to the person that you care about, maybe it’s your parents, siblings, or friends, and say, “Merry Christmas.” Do not forget to give them a big, warm hug.

◎ 208班 蔡侑辰
Last Friday, in my English listening class, Teacher Armon told us to make Christmas cards for our family or friends. Inside the card, you can write Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year, or some holiday message. When we finished making our cards, Tr. Armon gave us candy and then we played Christmas bingo. Somebody in my class got bingo but I
did not. However, Tr. Armon gave me another piece of candy because I was number 1 in my class on our weekly quiz. Merry Christmas !