聖誕樹上爲什麼要掛像醃黃瓜一樣的小飾品？
聖誕節就要到了，仔細觀察裝飾好的聖誕樹，你有沒有發現隱藏在樹枝深處的一顆“醃黃瓜”？爲什麼人們要在聖誕樹上掛醃黃瓜狀飾品呢？這個傳統的來歷其實有好幾種說法。
Every year, families across the US and the UK hang up quirky little pickle-shaped ornaments when it comes time to trim their Christmas trees.
每年聖誕節，美國和英國的家庭都會在聖誕樹上掛上新奇有趣的醃黃瓜狀小飾品。
trim [trɪm]: vt. 修剪；整理；裝點
The practice is favored by many English-speaking families, and is thought to be a centuries-old tradition brought over from Germany.
很多英語國家的家庭都喜歡在聖誕樹上掛醃黃瓜狀裝飾。據說這個傳統來自德國，已經有幾百年歷史。
The tradition involves hiding the pickle ornament among the branches, and rewarding the child who finds it with the chance to open gifts first — or, alternatively, that person simply gets good luck for the year.
人們把醃黃瓜形狀的裝飾品藏在聖誕樹的樹枝裏，哪個孩子首先在聖誕節找出它，就可以最先拆開禮物，或者預示着來年運氣爆棚。
The origin of the tradition, however, is a bit murky.
但這個傳統的起源卻不太清楚。
murky ['mɜːkɪ]:朦朧的，含糊不清的
In fact, it doesn't seem to have actually originated in Germany at all, since most Germans don't practice it.
其實這個傳統並非來自德國，因爲大多數德國人並不會在聖誕樹上掛醃黃瓜狀飾品。
A 2016 New York Times article pointed to a YouGov poll, in which 2,057 Germans were asked about the Christmas pickle.
2016年《紐約時報》曾報道稱，輿觀調查網就聖誕樹掛醃黃瓜狀飾品的傳統，向2057位德國人展開了調查。
The survey found that 91 percent had never even heard of it.
調查發現，91%的受訪者從沒聽說過這個傳統。
Another theory is that the tradition of hanging a pickle didn't actually start in Germany, but with a German immigrant in the US.
另一種說法是，這一傳統並非源自德國，而是來自美國的一位德國移民。
According to a 2011 edition of Tampa Bay magazine, one legend goes that a German man named John Lower, who was born in Bavaria in 1842, moved to the US and became ill when he was in prison during the Civil War.
根據2011年《坦帕灣》雜誌的一篇報道，有一種說法是，1842年出生在德國巴伐利亞約翰-洛厄來到美國後生病了，當時正處於美國內戰時期，他被囚禁在監獄裏。
He convinced a guard to give him a pickle as a last meal, but he ended up surviving. After being released, he honored that pickle by starting his own family tradition of hiding a pickle in his Christmas tree for the kids — saying whoever found it would have the same good fortune he did.
他說服一名看守給了他一顆醃黃瓜作爲最後的一餐，但他最終活了下來。在被釋放後，爲了紀念這顆醃黃瓜，他開始在家中過聖誕節時在聖誕樹裏藏一顆醃黃瓜給孩子們尋找，還說誰找到就會有和他一樣的好運。
Of course, that story is also unconfirmed, and could just be a tale that popped up to explain the pickles later on.
當然，這個說法也未經證實，僅能作爲解釋聖誕樹掛醃黃瓜狀飾品這種傳統的一個傳說故事。
According to Wide Open Country, the whole pickle game was most likely a marketing ploy to sell German glass ornaments to Americans.
根據《開闊的國家》報道，這一傳統很可能是把德國的玻璃飾品賣到美國的一種銷售策略。
ploy [plɒɪ]: n.策略；活動
It was said to be concocted by F.W. Woolworth when the store began importing the ornaments in 1880. Each one would come with a card that told the story of the tradition.
據稱，這一傳統是伍爾沃斯公司創造出來的。在1880年，這家商店開始進口飾品。每件飾品都附帶有一張卡片，講述這個聖誕傳統的故事。
Whether the tradition is real or manufactured, pickle ornaments have become quite ubiquitous.
不管這個傳統來自真實事件，還是被杜撰的，在聖誕樹掛醃黃瓜狀飾品已經非常流行。
ubiquitous [juː'bɪkwɪtəs]: adj.普遍存在的；無所不在的
While whimsical foodie ornaments shaped like avocado toast, hot sauce, pancakes, and ramen have become popular in recent years, pickle ornaments aren't just a fad.
儘管近年來開始流行在聖誕樹上掛新奇的食物狀飾品，比如形似牛油果吐司、辣醬、薄烤餅和拉麪的裝飾品，但在聖誕樹掛醃黃瓜狀飾品一直流傳至今。
whimsical ['wɪmzɪk(ə)l]: adj.古怪的；異想天開的
fad [fæd]: n.時尚；一時的愛好
