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🎀Thanksgiving day 🎀

在美國
感恩節是11月的第四個星期四
是一個全家團聚的重要日子
1863年林肯總統將每年11月的最後一個星期四
訂為國定假日也就是感恩節

感恩節是一個充滿愛的節日
1620年的英格蘭清教徒
為了擺脫英國國教的信仰壓迫
以及嚮往美好的未來
這102名英格蘭人搭乘五月花號前往美洲大陸
They have given up their houses.
They have said goodbye to their friends.
They have said goodbye to England,too.
全然放棄人間的一切所有前往未知的世界
在海上還有海盜、暴風雨
以及傳聞中兇殘的印地安人等待著
究竟是什麼讓他們有這般勇氣？

在航行近9週的日子也不好過
1️⃣Most of them must stay in one stuffy place below the deck.
It is cold and damp.
There is no water for washing,no toilet.
Every day the Pilgrims eat the same meal-pickled beef,cheese,and dry,hard bread.
Some of the bread is full of worms.
Even the water tastes bad.

2️⃣Halfway across the ocean the Mayflower is hit by terrible storms.

即使好不容易上岸了
他們仍然遭受寒冬、疾病的侵襲
1️⃣How hard that first winter is!
Every day is black and cold.
Fierce,icy winds rip through the settlement.

2️⃣Almost everyone gets sick.
Many people die.
The small Pilgrim band gets smaller and smaller.
By the end of winter only half of the Pilgrims are still alive.

但還好傳聞中兇殘的印地安人十分有善
在1615年被綁架到歐洲當奴隸的印地安人Squanto成為清教徒的好友
除了用英文溝通
讓清教徒和印度安人簽訂54年的和平協議外
還教導清教徒如何在這片陌生土地種植、狩獵、捕魚
就這樣
The Pilgrims work hard all summer.
In the fall the fields are full of good things to eat.
在清教徒的心中
It is a time of plenty for the Pilgrims.
How thankful they are.

於是他們在秋收之際舉辦了大餐
感謝幫助他們的印地安人
以及感謝讓他們在困頓中
仍保有盼望的神

在感恩節中
我們可以感受到清教徒的艱辛移民史
不僅大人需要作粗活
連孩子們都要分擔許多工作
Pilgrim children worked very hard.
They built fences and cared for animals.
They planted,harvested,and ground corn.
They picked pumpkins,peas,and beans.
They guarded the fields.
They fished and hunted.
They carried water.
They collected nuts.
They cooked and cleaned.
They did everything they were told.
They never complained about being tired.
👉#這就是一件歷史、一個假日
給予人最深刻的意義
讓孩子在艱苦中學會同甘共苦、同舟共濟的精神

以及被賣到歐洲為奴的Squanto
並沒因仇恨而殺害來自歐洲的清教徒
反而在他們眼裡看到自己初踏陌生土地的恐懼
成為清教徒最好的朋友
Be kind to those who feel different and afraid
親切的對待那些覺得陌生、恐懼的人
👉#推己及人、愛人如己的意義
充滿在感恩節中

放棄原有的一切
在困頓的環境中仍不放棄希望
盼望、等待寒冬過後的春天到來
或許就是宗教的力量
在這群仁慈、勇敢清教徒的身上全然展現
👉It's the day of thanksgiving to God.
👉所以，我們不喪膽。
外體雖然毀壞，
內心卻一天新似一天。
我們這至暫至輕的苦楚，
要為我們成就極重無比、永遠的榮耀。

📚參考書籍📚
1️⃣神奇樹屋《難忘的感恩節》
2️⃣蘭登3《The First Thanksgiving 》

📚感恩節簡介📚
In the United States,the fourth Thursday in November is called Thanksgiving Day. On this day, Americans give thanks for the blessings they have enjoyed during the year. Thanksgiving is usually a family day,celebrated with big dinners and happy reunions. The first American Thanksgiving was held in Plymouth, Massachusetts in 1621.In 17th century, a group of Pilgrims left England to explore the New World. It was in September of 1620 when their ship called the “Mayflower” left port with 102 men, women, and children on board.
They landed in Province town harbor after 65 days at sea.The Pilgrims were poorly trained and poorly equipped to cope with life in the wilderness.During their first winter in the new land, they suffered tremendously.Poor food, hard work, infectious diseases,and bitterly cold weather killed about half of them. By the end of this terrible first winter,only about 50 remained alive.
One spring morning in 1621,an Indian walked into the little village of Plymouth and introduced himself in a friendly way.Later, he brought the Indian chief, Massasoit, who gave gifts to the people and offered assistance.The Indians of Massasoit’s tribe taught the Pilgrims how to hunt, fish, and grow food.They taught the Pilgrims to use fish for fertilizer in planting corn, pumpkins, and beans.Because of this help from the Indians,the Pilgrims had a good harvest. Governor William Bradford was following an ancient tradition when, in the fall of 1621, he issued a proclamation establishing a day of thanksgiving to God.The governor also decided to use this religious occasion to strengthen the bond of friendship between the Pilgrims and their Indian neighbors. So he invited Chief Massasoit and his braves to share the Thanksgiving feast. The Indians gladly accepted and sent five deer ahead.The Pilgrim men went hunting and returned with turkey and other wild game.The women of Plymouth prepared delicious dishes from corn, cranberries, squash and pumpkins.

不符經濟效益，美國 Energy 電業集團連續關宣布將關閉紐約州、麻州核電廠!!! (11/06/2015 TechNews 財經新報)

作者 藍 弋丰

美國電力公司安特吉（Entergy）原本是美國國內主要核電營運商之一，不過如今卻接二連三宣布關閉核電廠，繼2014年底關閉位於佛蒙特州的洋基核電站（Vermont Yankee Nuclear Power Plant）之後，該集團在 2015 年 10 月 13 日，Entergy 宣布因不堪營運虧損，將關閉美國麻州唯一的核電廠，位於普利茅斯的清教徒核電站（Pilgrim Nuclear Generating Station）。11 月 2 日，Entergy 再度宣布，同樣因為不堪虧損的經濟因素，將關閉位於紐約州奧斯維格郡、安大略湖畔，自 1975 年運轉至今的詹姆斯·A·菲茲派翠克核電站，該核電站供應紐約州約 2% 電力。
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[ 不敵天然氣、再生能源與大幅強化的核安維護成本，美國又有一座核電廠宣布將提前關閉除役!! ]（10/13/2015 Boston Globe 波士頓環球日報）

美國 Entergy 電業集團10/13日由集團負責核電部門的營運主管Bill Mohl 於記者會上正式宣佈旗下位於麻州普利茅斯的 Pilgrim核電廠（清教徒核電廠）最遲將於2019年6月1日之前關閉除役，這座清教徒核電廠是麻州唯一的ㄧ座核電廠。

清教徒核電廠是在1972年開始商業運轉，總部位於路易斯安那州的 Entergy 電業集團是在1999年時從前任經營者手上買下朝聖者核電廠接手經營，原本反應爐已經被美國核管會NRC核准取得營運執照到2032年，Entergy 電業在10月13日的記者會上表示因為市場情勢改變以及營運成本不斷增加，清教徒核電廠已經無法維持正常營運，Bill Mohl 在記者會上同時也表示，如果目前的供電合約可以順利解決，Entergy 電業最快可以在2017年的時候就將清教徒核電廠關閉除役。
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