故事。然而这件事却划定了历史前进的方向，并且直到现在仍在改写着千百万人的命运。两千多年来，圣诞节一直传递着一个信息--上帝与我们同在。正因为他陪伴着我们，所以我们能永远生活在希望之中。

值此佳节我们与家人一同张灯结彩，并一同深切缅怀那些离我们而去的亲人。我们国家有成千上万的家庭仍在为去年九月十一号降临到他们头上的那场可怕灾难而哀恸不已。我们祈祷他们安心，我们祈祷所有今年丧失生活勇气的人安心。

此时我们举国上下同样也牵挂着那些军营中的男女军人，他们中的许多人将会在远离家乡的岗位上度过这个圣诞节。他们屹立在美国人与危机之间，他们捍卫着和平与自由，他们自豪地穿着军装，而我们为他们自豪。（掌声）

我和劳拉祝愿所有的美国家庭节日好运、假期愉快、圣诞快乐。现在，我们有幸来点亮这棵国家圣诞树。我们也请来两位新朋友--莎玛拉·班克斯和本·施内尔勒--帮助我们一起来点亮这棵树。

请诸位走上前来，（笑声），各就各位。请大家跟着我们一起数：五、四、三、二、一。（掌声）

注释：

1) humble a. 卑下的，简陋的

2) entertainer n. 款待者，演艺人员

3) millennium n. 太平盛世，一千年（millennia 是其复数形式）

4) countdown n. 倒数

★★《2003年03月号-第39期-disc02-08》★★

should i follow my instincts?

van de mark: now, lillian, i want to know when does one decide, it's more than a 1)hunch, this is really something i believe in, and i'm going to take action with it?

dr. lillian rubin: well, it's not a when. before you can decide that, one has to know oneself pretty well, which means that you have to have had some experience with knowing that your hunches. and it's knowing your strengths and weaknesses - really important - if you think you can do anything, you're going to fail. every one of us has strengths and weaknesses.

van de mark: i hear two things here. one is the self-awareness, which we can get into a little bit more, but also this notion of testing: making sure that when you do act on a hunch, that you make sure that you're testing a little bits before you make big decisions.

dr. lillian rubin: exactly! but, and not only testing, but supposing you say, "ok, my gut tells me i'm gonna go on that path not this one", you take... you go half a mile down the road, know when it's a mistake. when you get to the point when you say, "uh, i think i should turn back." go!

van de mark: self-awareness; this bigger, broader question. knowing what you truly want, knowing what really fits with your life - choosing a spouse, for instance, or choosing a place to live or a job or boss - what questions should you ask yourself and should you ask them all the time?

dr. lillian rubin: well, i think yes. when you're, when 2)sorting out those big issues, you'd better be asking all the time. those self-awareness requires an ability to listen to your inner voice, and to know that you don't always do what you want to do, but that you might do what you should do. i don't mean that one should live with "shoulds", but often we want, you know, talk about getting married, people want to marry, to fall in love and marry their little ideal type. it may be exactly the wrong thing for them. and how many people do you know and i know, who, you know, on their wedding day, they said to themselves, "what are you doing?" and then went ahead and got married.

van de mark: how many people do you know? i mean you've counseled so many, how many of them felt that way?

dr. lillian rubin: many. many. it's not uncommon. it isn't just the anxiety of the moment; it's, there's been this inner voice that's been saying, "maybe this is not right." and they don't listen because there's too much invested in that path.

van de mark: here are a few thoughts on going with your gut from those who have.

howard schultz: how many people have you met in your life who have said things like, "i had that idea", "i knew about that", or "i was so close but i gave up". i think sometimes the difference between success and failure, winning and losing, is a very fine line between those people who'll continue to move forward.

sumner redstone: you can't be sure of yourself. to a large extent, you have to follow your instincts. and what are your instincts? experience, and i'd like to think some degree of intellectual capacity, ah, and that's what instinct is. you have to be a risk-taker.

jack welch: getting self-confidence is at the heart of success, in every aspect of life.

paul shaw: 3)in terms of the major trend what might happen over the next five years, a lot of that is intuition. but it's 4)intuition that's really 5)steeped in 6)observance, it's not just sorta waking up one day and saying, i think people are, you know, suddenly gonna do this instead of that. it's, it's really intuition and instinct because of all the different things you're sensing.

marleen mcdaniel: i think all 7)setbacks are to your advantage. i mean, like, just when one door closes, another door is opening. and frequently, these setbacks are planted there, and so maybe there is fate and i might even believe in it. but they are planted there. they may require you to change direction -- you may have stayed in a situation long after, it's done its usefulness, because this life really is about learning and growing, you've gotta just keep moving with that energy that's all around us all the time.

成功真的要靠直觉吗？

范·德·马克：莉莲，我想知道人们会在什么时候认定某件事情不只是直觉，而是可以付诸行动的呢？

莉莲·鲁宾博士：什么时候并不重要。在做决定之前，你必需十分了解自己，即有必要做一些试验来了解自己的直觉是怎样的。清楚自己的长处和短处是十分重要的。如果你认为自己什么事情都能做得来，你注定会失败。我们每个人都有自己的长处和短处。

范·德·马克：你说到了两个要点：第一是自我