单选题 It was full summer. The blazing African sun beat down on the village. The air was heavy with the smell of blossoms and of wood fires and of cooking meat. In his hut, sat Peter, the ivory hunter, thinking what day his shipment of ivory would reach the coast. Looking at his calender, he suddenly realized that today must be Christmas Day.
Christmas! At home across the ocean they"d be eating turkey and other Christmas foods. There would be presents for him, for James, his brother, for his mother...his father. It seems to be funny, thinking like this. They had all died long ago. That was why Peter did not like to think about Christmas.
Near his hut sat an old warrior, thinking of the past and gazing at the horizon. There, much too far away to see, lay Zululand. Over the hills, the valleys, the rivers, he and the other warriors had come, young warriors leaping, beating their spears against their shields.
The old man looked at the huts of his village. There were the homes of his seven wives—not one of them a Zulu. His children played in the dust. Not Zulus. Only half Zulus.
He looked up when the white man came toward him.
"You are thinking, old one," Peter said to his friend.
"Yes, I am thinking of war and of my people and of my sons that have not been born."
"You have many sons?"
"I have many sons, but they are not Zulus. I am old and sick. I longed for my home—for the green hills and rivers."
"Today, I too have thought of my home," Peter said. "Because my heart was lonely, I came to speak to my friend."
Just then, one of the women came and whispered something to the old man. He looked at Peter. "A child is born to me," he said. "A son. It is for this news that I was waiting here."
"A child," Peter said. "Have you a name for him?"
"I have no name. You name him."
"Call him Christmas," Peter said. "That"s the name of this day in my country."
"And what happened on this day that it is named?" asked the old one.
"On this day long ago a child was born. A boy."
"Tell me the story."
Peter sat down. The tale. How long was it since he had heard the story? Would he remember it?
"A long time ago," he said, "there were a man and a woman named Joseph and Mary. She was pregnant. There was no place for them to stay when they reached the great village to which they were traveling, so the woman gave birth among the cattle to a son. He was named Jesus. And the day of his birth was named Christmas. His father was God."
"What happened to the child?" asked the old one.
"He grew wise and strong and very great."
"Then will I give my son that name? The name of the day this great king was born. Christmas shall be my son"s name."
Returning home, Peter thought they were eating turkey and Christmas foods. Here it was full summer and a child had been born and named. Because of this, Peter would never forget Christmas, again, for each year the old warrior"s son would have his birthday and there would be a feast to celebrate.
Christmas had come to stay in this African village. But Peter wished he could have told the Christmas story better. It was a finer story than that—much finer.

单选题 Peter"s job was ______.

单选题 Peter learned the date ______.

单选题 Peter did not like to think about Christmas because it made him ______.

单选题 Peter and the old man were similar to each other because they ______.

单选题 Peter"s parents and brother were ______.