(Minghui.org) Today in China with the persecution still going on, many family members and friends still support Falun Gong practitioners. My father, who doesn't practice Falun Gong, is one of them.
Detention in a Forced Labor Camp
When I was illegally held at a forced labor camp, my parents came to visit me. My mother told me, “Your father has been encouraging me, 'We have to do well. Don't make our son worry about us. We will encourage him to do well.'”
After I was released, my mother told me that my father's job was quite difficult, but he would tell her, “Our son was detained only because he practices Falun Gong. We shouldn't cause him to worry. I will do well. I will continue to do well.”
In the summer, father worked diligently and didn't even feel the heat while working inside a workshop where the temperature was over 150 °F!
My father once had an accident during his commute. The fork crown that connects the front wheel to the head tube of the bicycle broke, flipping my father over. The broken metal part of the front fork cut into the area between his shoulder blade and neck, causing him to bleed. His lower leg also bled. However, he recovered in just three days.
After the accident, my father became interested in reading all of the informational materials about Falun Gong. Sometimes my mother would joke with him, asking, “Do you understand those experience sharing articles?” He replied, “Well, even though I haven't started practicing Falun Gong yet, I know it's good and how precious the Fa is. I genuinely support practitioners! Everything they do is for others and not for themselves!”
Witnessing the Benefits of Falun Gong
My mother, my grandmother, and I began practicing Falun Gong in 1996. Prior to that, my mother suffered from frequent headaches and hepatitis, so it was difficult for her to work in the fields. My mother's illnesses disappeared shortly after she began practicing Falun Gong.
My grandmother had varicose veins and used to be in a lot of pain. After practicing Falun Gong, she became healthy again and hasn't needed to take medication for the past ten years.
My father witnessed all of these positive physical and mental changes. He knew that the family's medical expenses would have been much higher if my mother and grandmother didn't practice Falun Gong.
Besides experiencing better health, my mother's and grandmother's personalities also changed after practicing Falun Gong. My mother became more considerate of my father and took good care of him and the entire family. My grandmother stopped taking my mother's side whenever my parents couldn't agree on something. She was able to stay objective. My family environment became happier and more harmonious.
Understanding Falun Gong Practitioners' Perspectives
When the persecution of Falun Gong began on July 20, 1999, my family, like hundreds of thousands of Falun Gong practitioners and their families, encountered extortion, detention, interrogation, detainment in forced labor camps, and other types of persecution.
Father is a simple man, and he was afraid of encountering trouble. He asked my mother and me to give up practicing Falun Gong to avoid persecution. My mother and I said, “You have seen that we have regained our health from practicing Falun Gong. Our improvement in xinxing is also due to Falun Gong. Falun Gong has benefited us physically and mentally. How can we stop practicing?”
We continued, “As an ancient Chinese saying goes, 'Once a teacher, always a teacher.' We have benefited so much from the practice. What kind of people are we if we hide at home when Falun Gong is wronged? Are we adding insult to injury or are we just being cunning?”
My father had nothing to say in response.
After that, whenever the police came to harass us, my father would say, “I have seen with my own eyes how much healthier my wife and son have become after practicing Falun Gong. Yet, you don't allow them to continue their practice. If they end up in bed due to sickness, are you going pay the medical bills?” The police were speechless.
I am happy to see how my father has changed. I know he is among many family members in China who understand and support Falun Gong practitioners.
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