Your Lucky Christmas Charm
Twój świąteczny amulet
We all wait for Christmas. Presents, food, family meetings and other fantastic things which happen only at that time.
Write down the name of a person you want to buy a present for. Change all the Polish letters into international ones, e.g.: Ł=L, Ó=O, Ż=Z. Now write a number for each letter (use the table below) and add up the numbers as long as there’s only one number left.
1 A J S
2 B K T
3 C L U
4 D M V
5 E N W
6 F O X
7 G P Y
8 H Q Z
9 I R
Example:
Anna Majek
a – 1, n – 5, m – 4, j – 1, e – 5, k – 2
1+5+5+1+4+1+1+5+2= 25 = 2+5= 7
Then add numbers from the date that the person will get the present, e.g.:
24.12.2006 = 2+4+1+2+2+0+0+6 =17=1+7=8
Now add the „name” number and „date” number together : 7+8 =15 = 1+5 =6
„6” is the lucky Christmas charm of Anna Majek. Now read her description which is 6 – Sleigh Bell.
Now check what the best present is for your friend!
1. Reindeer – He/she likes sports and can’t sit down for five minutes without moving. The best present will be something that involves exercise e.g. Twister game or sports equipment.
2. Snowman – This person loves to feel comfortable. You’ll make him/her happy by giving something that is connected with his/her hobby. Find out what their favourite hobby is.
3. Mistletoe (jemioła) – He/she love the companionship of other people very much. Learn if he/she is going to a party soon and buy something she/he may wear: a necklace, earrings, a nice hat or anything they may like.
4. Santa Claus – This person prefers giving rather than receiving. You’re really lucky with him/her! Whatever you’ll prepare for them, they’ll be happy.
5. Elf – This modest (skromny) person will like any present, but if you want to make him/her extremely excited, buy some rare and luxurious sweets.
6. Sleigh Bell – A person interested in art music and culture issues. Make him/her happy by buying a book or a small piece of art. It doesn’t have to be a Picasso. It can be a small handmade figure or a painting by somebody unknown.
7. Bauble (świecidełko, błyskotka) – He/she has a lot of friends because they are very honest and polite at the same time. Ask straight away what she/he’d like to get or if you want to surprise him/her, ask other people what the person may like.
8. Christmas Fairy (wróżka) – It’s a very wise person. The present that would always make him/her happy is a book. Before you buy one though make sure that she/he doesn’t already have it.
9. Christmas Tree – It’s a lover of variety. He/she won’t be disappointed if you give him/her many small presents instead of a big one. For example, a colourful pen, a notebook, some sweets, a photo frame etc., in one box.
Zadanie
Wstaw poszczególne słowa z ramki w odpowiednie luki.
ghost; number; past; life; education; effects; born; point; something; change; whether; actors; guide; financial; poverty
Christmas Carol
Charles Dickens was ____________ (1) in Landport, Hampshire. Dickens’s father was a clerk in the navy pay office. He was well paid but often ended in ______________(2) troubles. In 1814 Dickens moved to London, and then to Chatham, where he received some ____________(3).
CHRISTMAS CAROL (1843) is one of Dickens’s most loved works, which has been adapted onto the screen a _______________(4) of times. The character of Ebenezer Scrooge, the ”squeezing, wrenching, grasping, scraping, clutching” miser, has attracted such _______________(5) as Seymour Hicks, Albert Finney, Michael Caine, George C. Scott and Alastair Sim. The story deals with two of Dickens’ recurrent (powtarzający się) themes, social injustice and ________________(6), the relationship between the two, and their causes and ___________(7). The first edition of A Christmas Carol was illustrated by John Leech. The story is so familiar we can almost forget the ___________(8). It’s never too late to change.
In Dickens’ tale of Ebenezer Scrooge, an old miser is shown his _____________(9), his present, and if he does not change, his future. The first ghost reminds him how he once enjoyed life’s pleasures. The second _______________(10) shows Scrooge his current state. The final ghost foretells (przepowiada) the likely outcome (wynik, rezultat) of his _____________(11). A Christmas Carol is not so much a Christmas story as a New Year’s story. For those of us who want to ____________(12) the course of our life, for those of us who want this year’s resolutions to actually mean _______________(13), we need to go through an Ebenezer-like process. ____________(14) your life is a bad life or an abused life or a flat life, you can use the ideas from this simple story as a ______________(15) to breaking the patterns which lead to bad ends.
Answers
1 – born; 2 – financial;
3 – education; 4 – number; 5 – actors; 6 – poverty; 7 – effects;
8 – point; 9 – past;
10 – ghost; 11 – life;
12 – change; 13 – something; 14 – whether;
15 – guide