Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer

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Welcome to Spotlight. I’m Liz Waid.

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And I’m Adam Navis. Spotlight uses a special English method of broadcasting. It is easier for people to understand, no matter where in the world they live.

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Do you know the story of Santa Claus? It is one of the most popular Christmas stories. He brings toys and gifts to good girls and boys. He flies in a sleigh pulled by eight reindeer. The story of Santa Claus has changed over the years. It has been told in books, films, and music.

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In 1939 Robert L. May wrote a new story about Santa Claus. This story soon became a well-known part of the story, or legend, of Santa Claus. This story has now been told in books and films. It is also a song. The song has even become one of the most popular Christmas songs of all time. Do you recognize it? Today’s Spotlight tells the story of Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer.

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Real reindeer live in groups in forests. They live in very cold places. They have large antlers made of bone on their heads. But in this story, reindeer can also fly! They guide Santa’s sleigh on the night before Christmas.

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Rudolph was a young reindeer. He wanted to play games and climb trees with other reindeer. But the other reindeer did not let him. Instead, they called him names. That is because Rudolph was not like all the other reindeer. Their noses were black or brown. But his nose was red. And it was like a bright light. A bright, red, light. The other reindeer would say,

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“Ha ha! Look at Rudolph! Look at his nose! It is as red as an apple! But it is much too big! It is so bright that I cannot even look at it!”

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These words made Rudolph cry. He knew that what they said was true. Still, he was a good reindeer. He listened to his parents. He tried to obey what they told him to do. But he was very lonely.

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One year, on the day before Christmas, Rudolph felt excited. He went to sleep, knowing that Santa would come that night.

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But Santa was having trouble. There was very bad weather. There was snow and fog. This would make it difficult for him to see where he was going. He would not see the stars or the moon. He would not know which way to go. He hoped he would be able to use house lights to guide his way. He was worried that he would not be able to reach all the boys and girls. But he called to his team of flying reindeer to come to him.

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“Come Dasher! Come Dancer! Come Prancer and Vixen! Come Comet! Come Cupid! Come Donner and Blitzen!”

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Santa loaded up his sleigh with toys and gifts. He connected each reindeer so they could pull together. Then off they all flew into the air. It took all of Santa’s skill not to get lost. But they crashed into the tops of trees. They almost hit an airplane as it flew through the clouds. Santa was able to continue to leave presents by using the lights from houses. But as house lights went out, it got darker and darker.

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The next house he visited was Rudolph’s. It was very dark now. Santa fell down and hurt his knee. He fell down again. Now he was very worried that he would not be able to continue. Then he entered Rudolph’s room to leave a present. To his surprise he found light. It was not a lamp. It was a nose! This gave Santa a wonderful idea. He woke Rudolph from his sleep. Rudolph could not believe what he was seeing. Santa was here!

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Santa told Rudolph of all the trouble he was having. He told him about the fog and the dark. He told him about getting lost and crashing into trees. He told Rudolph how he was afraid that the boys and girls of the world would be sad if they woke without gifts. Then Santa asked Rudolph if he would help.

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“You may save the day. Your nose is so wonderful. I need you to help me tonight. To lead all my deer on the rest of our flight.”

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Rudolph smiled. No one had ever said that his nose was wonderful – especially not someone as important as Santa Claus. For a reindeer, the best honor was to be chosen to pull Santa’s sleigh. Rudolph could not believe what was happening. He ran outside. He took his place in front of all the other reindeer.

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Soon, Santa was flying through the night again. Now he could go fast. Now they did not get lost or crash. They finished giving all the gifts just as the sun began to rise. All the other reindeer were just now waking up. But Rudolph was not in his bed! They wondered where he had gone.

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Then they heard the sound of bells. Santa and his reindeer flew out of the sky. Could it be? Was that Rudolph? Rudolph landed in front of the other reindeer. They had all called him names and not let him play with them. Now, Santa told all the reindeer that he had never seen a reindeer so brave as Rudolph. Santa told everyone that when it was dark or there was fog, Rudolph would lead the sleigh again.

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In fact, this Christmas, if you listen carefully, you may hear them call, as they drive out of sight: Merry Christmas to all and to all a good night!

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The story of Rudolph the Red-nosed Reindeer has many versions. But in every story, one thing is the same. Rudolph learns to accept who he is. In the beginning, Rudolph has a part of himself that he does not like. He feels shame. But by the end of the story, it is that very thing that everyone celebrates!

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We are all like Rudolph in some ways. We all have things about ourselves that we feel shame about or do not like. But this Christmas, maybe we can be a little more like Rudolph. We can find a way to shine our light and make the world a little brighter.

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Tell us what you think about the story of Rudolph the Red-nosed Reindeer. What do you think the lesson of this story is? You can leave a comment on our website. Or email us at radio@radioenglish.net. You can also comment on Facebook at Facebook.com/spotlightradio.

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The writer of this program was Adam Navis. The producer was Michio Ozaki. The voices you heard were from the United States. This program was based on the story of Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer by Robert L. May. You can listen to this program again, and read it, on the internet at www.radioenglish.net. This program is called, ‘Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer’.

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Visit our website to download our free official app for Android or Apple devices. We hope you can join us again for the next Spotlight program. Merry Christmas!

Question:

Have you heard the song about Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer? Have you heard the story?