To Celebrate the Moon and More | 烤肉、赏月、中秋乐

by Marcus Maurice

When the moon is full, mankind is one.

中秋月圆人团圆。

The Moon Festival is on the 15th day of the eighth month in the Chinese lunar calendar. This year, families will get together and barbeque in front of their apartments or in public parks on September 22. The atmosphere is quite festive because relatives get to _(1)_ with each other and the food is always delicious. The Moon Festival became associated _(2)_ barbequing many years ago because of a soy sauce commercial. In the commercial, many friends and family members were shown enjoying themselves around a grill. Afterwards, more and more people decided to _(3)_ barbeque parties annually.

While barbequing may now be the focus, there are three legends related to the Moon Festival. In the first one, an archer shot nine of the 10 suns out of the sky. _(4)_, he won an elixir of eternal life. His wife accidentally consumed it all and soon floated to the moon to live out her _(5)_ life. The second folk tale involves a man that was banished to the Moon Palace to cut down a tree that would _(6)_ restore itself. In the final fable, three wise men transformed themselves into beggars and asked a fox, a monkey, and a rabbit for something to eat. The fox and the monkey both gave the beggars food, but since the rabbit didn't have anything, it _(7)_ itself so the men could eat, making it known as the Jade Rabbit. Whether it's telling the stories of old or barbequing with friends, the Moon Festival is something to look forward to every year.

1.    (A) keep up   (B) break up    (C) catch up    (D) speed up

2.    (A) into  (B) with    (C) from    (D) over

3.    (A) hold  (B) occur   (C) take place  (D) come about

4.    (A) Sooner or later   (B) In other words  (C) By doing so (D) On the contrary

5.    (A) current   (B) temporary   (C) original    (D) endless

6.    (A) superficially (B) continually (C) previously  (D) respectively

7.    (A) sacrificed    (B) interrupted (C) behaved (D) expressed

中秋节在中国农历的 8 月 15 日。而今年的中秋节是 9 月 22 号，届时家家户户都会团聚在一起，在自家门前或公园里烤肉。中秋节庆气氛欢乐，这是因为亲戚能互相闲聊近况，而且食物都非常美味。中秋节会和烤肉有所关联是由于多年前的一则酱油广告。广告中，许多亲朋好友享受着烤肉的欢愉气氛。之后就有越来越多人决定每年举办烤肉活动。

虽然烤肉现在是中秋节的焦点活动，但还有 3 个和这个节日相关的传说。第一个故事中，一名弓箭手把天上 10 颗太阳中的 9 颗射下来。这么做让他获得了长生不老药。而他的妻子不小心吃掉所有的药，接着飞向月亮过着长生不老的生活。第二个民间故事则是有关一名被放逐到月宫上的男子，他必须砍倒一颗会持续恢复生长的树。而在最后一个传说中，3名贤者化身成乞丐，向一只狐狸、猴子和兔子乞食。狐狸和猴子都给了食物，但因为兔子没有任何东西，于是牠牺牲自己好让这些乞丐得以饱食，牠也因此成为了玉兔。无论是诉说这些古老故事还是和朋友相聚烤肉，中秋节总是每年让人引颈期盼的节日。

答案：1. (C)2. (B)3. (A)4. (C)5. (D)6. (B)7. (A)

For Your Information

中秋赏月是中秋节的传统项目之一，《礼记》早有记载拜祭月神的习俗。至唐宋时期，赏月之风更加盛行，关于中秋的诗词也层出不穷，其中以苏轼的《水调歌头》最为人熟知。

除了赏月，吃月饼已经是中国各地过中秋节的必备习俗。相传元朝的时候，汉人在元人的统治下苦不堪言，朱元璋揭竿反元，但元军控制严密，义军无法传递消息，为此刘伯温献计，在中秋节互赠糕饼，并在里面夹纸条，上面写着『八月十五杀鞑子』，作为起义的讯号。（数据源：维基百科）