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本文是一篇说明文，主要介绍了中国春节的一些传统习俗在逐渐消失的现象以及人们对此现象的不同看法。
The old Chinese saying “as happy as spending the New Year” might be outdated now in the busy modern world. The Spring Festival is regarded as the most important festival for Chinese people and an occasion for all family members to get together, like Christmas in the West. Many traditional customs accompanying the Spring Festival, however, have weakened in practice.
Setting off fireworks was once the most typical custom of the Spring Festival. People thought the sputtering （爆裂）sound could help drive away evil spirits. However, the activity has been completely or partially forbidden in big cities for years as the government has taken security, noise and pollution factors into consideration.
“In recent years, some cities have begun to allow people to light fireworks during limited hours at the Spring Festival, surrendering to （屈从于）public demand. Respecting folk traditions is a gesture of respect toward public opinion,” said Zhou Xing, a folklore researcher.
“As people gain more income and it becomes easier to buy daily goods, the New Year holiday is just like any other. After long workdays, many people use the New Year holiday to take a rest, rather than visiting friends and neighbors. The process of making and enjoying the family dinner on Spring Festival Eve is the most important thing. However, many families would like to eat out to save time and energy,” said Li Shunzhi, a resident of Harbin, Heilongjiang.
“I enjoy the holidays very much in the countryside. My family has been preparing for the Spring Festival more than two weeks before the holiday, cleaning the house, buying holiday goods and decorating the house with paper cuttings. On New Year’s Eve, the whole family stays up to see the New Year in, and in the days to follow, a series of activities such as lion dancing, dragon lantern dancing, lantern festivals and temple fairs will be held. Without the ancient traditions, the holiday is nothing to us,” said Zhang Hui, from Hebei.
在繁忙的现代世界里，中国的一句老话“像过年一样快乐”也许已经过时了。春节被认为是中国人最重要的节日，也是全家团聚的日子，就像西方的圣诞节。但是，许多春节中的传统习俗在实践中却弱化了。
燃放烟花曾经是春节最典型的习俗。人们认为烟花的爆裂声可以帮助驱赶鬼怪。然而，由于政府考虑到安全、噪音和污染因素，这些活动在大城市已经被完全或部分禁止。
“近年来，一些城市已经开始允许人们在春节期间在规定的时间燃放烟花爆竹，以满足公众的需求。尊重民间传统是尊重公众意见的一种姿态，”民俗研究者周星说。
“随着人们收入的增加，日常用品的购买变得越来越容易，新年假期就和其他任何一个节日一样。在漫长的工作日之后，许多人利用新年假期来休息，而不是去拜访朋友和邻居。在除夕制作和享用家庭晚餐的过程是最重要的。然而，许多家庭喜欢外出吃饭以节省时间和精力，”黑龙江哈尔滨的居民李舜志说。
“我非常喜欢乡村的假日。我的家人在春节前两个星期就在为春节做准备，打扫房子，买节日用品，用剪纸装饰房子。除夕之夜，全家人都要守夜迎接新年的到来，在接下来的日子里，有一系列的活动，如舞狮、龙灯舞、灯会和庙会将被举行。没有古老的传统，节日对我们来说毫无意义，”来自河北的张慧说。
saying n. 谚语
outdated adj. 过时的
accompany vt. 陪伴，伴随
limited adj. 有限的
consideration n. 考虑
The Spring Festival is regarded as the most important festival for Chinese people and an occasion for all family members to get together, like Christmas in the West.
春节被认为是中国人最重要的节日，也是全家团聚的日子，就像西方的圣诞节。
After long workdays, many people use the New Year holiday to take a rest, rather than visiting friends and neighbors.
在漫长的工作日之后，许多人利用新年假期来休息，而不是去拜访朋友和邻居。
