Upward Bound: First year. Воробьева М.Г - 175 стр.

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— 175 —
Happy New Year! April Fool! Trick or Treat! Merry
Christmas!
People in every culture celebrate holidays. Although the word
«holiday» literally means «holy day», most American holidays are
not religious, but commemorative in nature and origin. Because the
nation is blessed with rich ethnic heritage it is possible to trace some
of the American holidays to diverse cultural sauces and traditions,
but all holidays have taken on a distinctively American flavour. In the
United States, the word «holiday» is synonymous with «celebration»!
In the strict sense, there are no national holidays in the United
States. Each of the 50 states has jurisdiction over its holidays. Federal
legal holidays are observed according to the legislation of individual
states. There are «legal» or «public» holidays which are observed at
the state or local level. Whether citizens have the day off from work
or not depends on local decisions. Federal government offices,
including the post office, are always closed on all federal legal holidays.
Schools and businesses close on major holidays like Independence
Day or Christmas but may not always be closed, for example, on
Mother’s Day or Veterans’ Day.
You can thumb through an ordinary calendar and discover
many special days i.e. «minor holidays» which are observed by a
relatively small number of people or by a particular interest group.
For example, «Girl Scouts’ Birthday» or «United Nations Day»
would have limited observance.
Events involving famous Americans, living or dead, have a
wider appeal. Many Americans may have forgotten the exact date
when President John F. Kennedy was assassinated, but they remember
exactly where they were and what they were doing when they first
learned about his tragic death. Other days commemorate events which
can be personally significant for one generation but have lost relevance
for another. The younger generation of today may know of the even
from their history book only.
Other holidays such as «Groundhog’s Day» (February 2) are
whimsically observed, at least in the media. The day is associated with
folklore which has grown up in rural America. It is believed, by someone,
if the groundhog comes out of its hole in the ground and sees its
shadow on that day it will become frightened and jump back in. This
means there will be at least six more weeks of winter. If it doesn’t see its
shadow, it will not be afraid and spring will begin shortly.

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