Traditions.

As the English proverb says “So many countries,so many customs”. So, every nation has its own customs and traditions. For example, any two countries can have absolutely different traditions in celebrating nation holidays. And now I would like to try to tell you about some of them.

Firstly I would like to tell about Halloween. Halloween is always celebrated on 31 October. Children love to dress up in Halloween costumes and go from door-to-door in their neighborhood following the old tradition of trick-or-treating, collecting sweets and gifts, sometimes money. Some families celebrate by playing special games like bobbing for apples and telling ghost stories. Also they carve pumpkins because the spirits will stay away and they will not get hurt. Speaking about Russia, our country does not have the tradition to celebrate Halloween, but nowadays teenagers and even some grown-ups arrange Halloween parties more and more often.

Then I will tell about Thanksgiving Day. This holiday is celebrated annually in the United States on the fourth Thursday in November. It was first observed in 1621 and continues to be an American tradition today. Thanksgiving means many things to different people but for most people, the holiday of Thanksgiving is synonymous with festive meals, parades, football, family and friends, and, of course, turkey. For many, it's also about spending time together, catching up and enjoying one another's company. The Thanksgiving holiday is a reminder to give thanks for the good things, people and providential events in our lives.

The most famous holiday in every European country is Christmas. The Christmas feast in England is very similar to the Christmas celebrations of other European countries. The houses are decorated with lights and Christmas garlands, also in every home a Christmas tree is decorated by the family with lights, baubles, fairy and tinsel. A star or an angel is placed on the top of the tree. The children send letters to Father Christmas and hang their stockings at the end of the bed or on the fireplace. According to legend if the children have been good their stockings will be filled with candies.

In our country Christmas is not the main winter holiday. The most lovely and merry holiday for the Russian is New Year. Since the 31st of December till the 10th of January Russian people have long holidays. And on every day of this period there are entertainment programmes in every park and square for the children and their parents.

What about New Year in England is not as widely or as enthusiastically observed as Christmas. Some people ignore it completely and go to bed at the same time as usual on New Year's Eve. Many others, however, do celebrate it in one way or another, the type of celebration varying very much according to the local custom, family tradition and personal taste.

In conclusion I want to say, that all traditions of different countries are very interesting and everybody should respect them.

What is beauty? Well, it's a rather difficult question for discussion, as it's a very extensive notion and there are many opinions about it. The dictionary defines beauty as good looks. Something pleasing to ones eye, and something that gives pleasure. Every individual has different ways of explaining what beauty is. As for me, I have never thought about it from a philosophical point of view. For me beauty is a combination of qualities that give pleasure to the mind and spirit. For me "beautiful" means "wonderful", "excellent" and "pleasant for the eyes"; and I think that beauty can't be only in person's appearance, but also in his soul, nature and arts.

Internal beauty through my view is strength of one’s character and will, their ambition in life, their honesty, their truthfulness towards them and others, and their kindness. When external beauty is supported with internal beauty it makes a stronger statement of beauty. External beauty is not forever, but if combined with internal beauty the impact will last forever. Without achieving internal beauty, external beauty is meaningless.

Very often we speak about beauty in a person's appearance. Usually when we see somebody who is attractive, has modern and cool clothes, we say that he or she is a beautiful person. It's the appearance that attracts us. I think such beauty is important in modeling, show business, advertising, and on television. And I am sure it's right because I don't think you'll enjoy an ad, a concert, a TV program or a magazine, if it shows a careless, unattractive and casual person. No doubt you know that many people, especially teens, listen to songs or watch TV pro-grams because they are performed by a pretty singer or a nice host. But sometimes it happens that when a good-looking person opens his mouth he begins to say such silly things, that very soon you are sorry to have started talking to him. And now you realize that it's not his appearance that is important, but his inner side. I am sure all of you have heard the proverb "Beauty is only skin deep". I agree with this proverb related to a person's communicative, ability to hold conversation. But on the other hand, it is not so pleasant to be always laughed at, to feel as if you are an ugly duckling. That's why I can't say what is better: to be beautiful inside or outside. Of course it will be wonderful if these two beauties are combined in one person. Of course it happens, but not so often as one would like.

Someone’s external beauty might lead to success, even fame. For example take a model who is successful. It doesn’t matter to the designers, and fashion industry that use her if she has the qualities that make her internally attractive. As long as she has the typical six foot, 98 pound, perky, and defined features she’s perfectly beautiful to them. They look at beauty for reasons of profit and money. But you realize that this beauty won’t last forever. Soon she will see those fine lines, all the gray hairs, and start adding weight, and become useless to the designers needs and wants.

A personal view of an internal beauty is my Grandmother, turning 70 this year. She is more beautiful then ever. Yes those unwanted lines have come, but that hasn’t taken away any of her beauty. She has wonderful qualities of character and it makes her beautiful and young.

Beauty is a harmony of everything: character and appearance. Beauty is everywhere but not every person pays attention for it. Let’s look closely to others and we will see a real beauty in our daily life. «Beauty will save the world».