環(huán)球英語 — 137：Listener Mail 81

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Voice 1

Hello. I’m Marina Santee.

Voice 2

And I’m Ruby Jones. Welcome to Spotlight. 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 1

Welcome to our listener mail programme! Today we share letters from different countries about different subjects! We will also hear from Mike Procter - who visited one of our listener areas! First, a letter from Josef in Slovakia.

Josef had a very special time at New Year. He went on a pilgrimage - a trip with a special religious meaning. He writes:

Voice 3

“I took part in a pilgrimage in Geneva, Switzerland. There were another thirty thousand young people from all over Europe there. The pilgrimage lasted five days. Most of the young people stayed with families in Geneva. It was very nice how families from Switzerland accepted strange people into their houses during the New Year holiday.”

Voice 1

An international religious community called Taize organized this pilgrimage. They called it, ‘The Pilgrimage of Trust on Earth’. The idea is to find ways that young people can trust each other. Josef describes what happened during this pilgrimage:

Voice 3

“All the young people met together two times a day in a big room. They prayed and sang together. It was a beautiful thing to see - thousands of young people praying for peace and quiet in the world. It filled us with joy and hope. And we felt God’s presence in this place.”

Voice 1

Thank you, Josef, for sharing such a special experience with us.

Voice 2

Next, a letter from Tan Ngoan in Vietnam:

Voice 4

‘I love to hear Spotlight. There are lots of subjects. And I understand because my English is limited. Thank you so much! I want to hear the Bible and subjects in easy English. Could Spotlight help me?’

Voice 2

Thanks for your request Tan Ngoan. There are some websites with the Bible in easy English. Easyenglish.info has the whole Bible. BibleGateway.com has different copies of the Bible. And you can hear it on this website too! We have links to these on our website. Look for the script of this programme, Listener Mail 81:

www.radio.english.net

Voice 1

And now, it is time for our Spotlight language hodgepodge. We hope you enjoy this, as it is the last one you will hear! As many of you know, this will be the last Spotlight programme. We have enjoyed making the programmes. And we hope you have enjoyed listening to them!

Voice 2

What?!

Voice 1

April Fool! Today’s hodgepodge is on April Fools’ Day!

Voice 2

So it isn’t the last Spotlight programme? That wasn’t true?

Voice 1

No, of course not! It was a trick - to introduce our hodgepodge about April Fools! April Fools’ Day is on the first of April. On this day, people everywhere play tricks. If the person believes them, they shout ‘April Fool!’

People believe that this day started hundreds of years ago. In 1582, Pope Gregory was the head of the Catholic Church in Europe. He decided to change the calendar - the system of organizing the days of the year. He declared that every country should operate by his new calendar. The beginning of the year was to be January the first. Before, it had been April the first.

Voice 2

But Gregory was only a religious leader - not a political one. And, some governments chose not to use this new calendar for a long time. So some people kept celebrating the New Year on April the first. Other people laughed at them for doing this. They thought those people were fools not to use the new calendar. They played tricks on them and called them, April Fools! And so the tradition began!

Voice 1

You can read more about the Gregorian calendar on our website: https://www.radio.english.net.

For more information about the Gregorian calendar:

The History of the Gregorian Calendar

Calendar Reform

Voice 2

And now a special greeting to the Dalat English Speaking Club in Vietnam! Thanks to all of you who write to us! And thanks too for your warm welcome to Mike Procter!! Here’s Mike with some words about his trip to Vietnam!

Mike

Well, Vietnam is a country full of surprises, and Dalat is one of them. It is a small city high in the mountains. It is in an area of waterfalls, lakes, and pine forests. It made me think of Mediterranean countries in Europe. But the best part of the visit was meeting the members of the Dalat Language Club. I hope to say more about that in another programme. It was great to see people of so many different ages coming together and enjoying Spotlight, and enjoying being together. We sang songs and talked together - in English of course. And I felt very welcome. The next day two of the club members showed us Dalat. They were Vy and Kim. They took us around on their motorcycles. It was great fun. I want to thank Vy, Kim, Dennis and all of the club members for their friendly welcome. It was a great visit.

Voice 1

Our last letter comes from Augusto in Quito. He listened to a programme about the English writer, John Donne. Augusto writes:

Voice 5

“His story was very interesting. He was a person that suffered great changes in his life…he was joined in true love with his beloved wife. But he wrote about being lonely - that a person is not an island... The message was very wise.”

Voice 1

Augusto also talks about part of a line from one of Donne’s poems. It is about death:

“So, never ask to know

For whom the bell tolls,

It tolls for you.”

Voice 1

Augusto comments:

Voice 5

“I think that death is something real for everyone.”

Voice 2

This is very true, Augusto. And John Donne’s words seem to encourage people. He found a way to deal with death. He trusted in God. And he had faith that he would be with God after he died - death was not the end.

Voice 1

Well, we have reached the end - the end of today’s programme! Thank you for listening. If you have comments or questions about any Spotlight programmes, you can reach us by e-mail. Our address is: radio @ english . net.