(Minghui.org) I've been practicing Falun Dafa for 14 years. I would like to share my story, an incredible journey from all kinds of pain and suffering to unimaginable joy.
At the age of 15, I was selected for the high jump in gymnastics, and during practice I suffered a bone injury that later evolved into a lumbar disc herniation. I couldn't carry heavy things, nor could I walk for a long time. I was just a teenager at the time.
I suffered flare-ups several times a year. Each time, I was bed-ridden and it took a couple of weeks to recover. I was in so much pain that I didn't want to live.
My father took me to many different doctors. I tried every possible Western and Chinese treatment, which only alleviated symptoms, at best.
One doctor was alarmed when looking at my X-rays, “If I only looked at this X-ray, I'd assume you were someone over 60 years old who had done too much physical labor. You are still so young. You might not be able to have children.”
I broke down and cried after leaving the hospital. I lost hope for marriage and a family.
I decided to go abroad for further study. My father objected strongly because of my condition, but I was determined and set out to make this dream come true.
Two weeks later, I got a work-study position in Switzerland, interning at a hotel. One day, as I was working at the front desk, two older Western ladies came in. When they saw that I was Chinese, they went back to their car and brought me some Falun Dafa materials. I had some questions about Falun Dafa, but my German was not good enough to communicate with them.
They came back a few days later and had brought with them a Chinese young man. He answered my questions and helped clear up the misconceptions I had due to the communist regime's propaganda. I decided right then and there that I wanted to learn Falun Dafa. That young man is now my husband.
About a month after I started practicing Falun Dafa, a classmate asked me to help carry her luggage (about 30kgs) downstairs. I didn't hesitate and helped her. That night, I suddenly thought of my lumbar problem. It should have been impossible for me to carry such heavy a suitcase! But I didn't feel any discomfort at all after carrying it. I felt great. I realized that Falun Dafa was miraculous.
I became pregnant and during my pregnancy, I felt very good, too.
Before I practiced Falun Dafa, I suffered from sinusitis, nasal cartilage lateral distortion, and nasal cysts. My throat was often swollen and I suffered nasal infection and congestion. I once had nasal cyst surgery in China. The doctor told me that the cyst would keep re-developing, so surgery would be needed every three years, otherwise, the optic nerve would be in danger of suppression.
Falun Dafa cured all of my illnesses. Even the doctor who took my X-rays said it was incredible.
Most of my generation don't have siblings due to the regime's “one child policy,” but I am an exception. I have a younger brother.
I grew up with my grandparents, who were devout Catholics. My grandmother educated me to follow the principles in the Bible. Whenever I was bullied or wronged, she told me, “If someone slaps you on one side of your face, turn the other cheek.”
At that time I couldn't understand its meaning, but I gradually developed a mentality of being tolerant. I tried not to hold a grudge against others, but I still might cry, then forget about it afterwards.
However, my mother criticized me and said I was a fool. She adored my younger brother and said he was smart. After I moved back in with my parents at age 12, my life was full of misery. My mother treated girls as being inferior to boys. She often cursed at and beat me. I cried myself to sleep every night.
I contemplated suicide, but in the bottom of my heart, I had a feeling that gods were watching over me and I would shoulder an important mission in the future.
At 14, I ran away to escape my mother's beatings. My father found me and took me back. The abuse continued and the hatred between my mother and me grew.
When I read Zhuan Falun for the first time, all these grievances seemed to have been settled at once. Master said,
“Our school of practice directly targets one’s mind. The key issue is whether you can take lightly and care less about the issues of individual gain and interpersonal conflicts.” (Zhuan Falun)
I came to understand why my mother was so cold to me. It was because I owed her from a past lifetime. Everything has its cause and effect. If I couldn't let go of my sense of pride and resentment, I would not be able to practice cultivation.
Once I realized this, I called home. I still remember it. My mother answered the phone and when she heard my voice, she handed the phone to my father and said angrily, “It's your daughter!”
After I chatted with my father for a while, I said I wanted talk to my mother. He was dumbfounded, so I had to repeat my request. I could hear his happiness as he called my mother to take the phone.
It was awkward at first, and I didn't know what to say. She was reluctant to talk to me, but I tried to break the ice. She got irritated with me suddenly as we talked, but I was not moved. Instead, I thought my mother was amusing. I couldn't help chuckling to myself. After that, she no longer berated me when I called.
The day after my son was born, I called my mother and said, “Mom, I am now a mother. I really appreciate your sacrifices while raising me. I sincerely apologize for what I put you through.”
I heard my mother getting choked up on the other end of the phone.
My mother and I came closer and closer. She even shared with me thoughts that she didn't share with my father.
She started caring about me and my life. She had never purchased clothes for me in my childhood. But now, she began mailing me care packages of clothes, jewelry, and snacks.
I lived with my grandparents in my childhood. My grandmother never asked me to do housework. When I lived with my parents, I never did housework either due to the frequent conflicts with my mother. My temper became very bad in that environment.
Before I got married, my mother warned my husband, “My daughter has a bad temper and never does housework. So you'd better think twice about marrying her.”
My husband, in his 20s at the time, responded without hesitation, “It doesn't matter. I will do everything! Moreover, her temper has become very good.”
After I started practicing cultivation in Falun Dafa, I realized that losing my temper was evil nature and would make me lose de (virtue). Master said,
“During the process of transforming karma, to keep yourself under control—unlike an everyday person who would mess things up—you should always maintain a heart of benevolence and a mind of kindness. If you suddenly bump into a problem, you will be able to take care of it properly. When you always maintain a heart of benevolence and compassion, you will have time or room to buffer the confrontation and think, should a problem arise suddenly. If you always think about competing with others and fighting back and forth, I would say that you will start a fight with others whenever there is a problem—this is guaranteed. Thus, when you encounter a conflict, I would say that it is to transform your black substance into the white substance, de.” (Zhuan Falun)
I paid more attention to my temper after I learned this passage of the Fa. I learned to consider the feelings of others, whether at work or at home, in words and in action. Gradually more and more people made friends with me. They all said I was a kind and gentle person.
My husband really did as he promised after we got married. He did all the housework, grocery shopping, and cooking. My husband is the youngest son of six siblings at home, but Falun Dafa made him a diligent person who never complained. I was inspired by him.
I was addicted to sleep during pregnancy. One time, I was still sleeping when my husband came home from work. I had left out dirty dishes that I used for lunch. I half opened my eyes to see how he would respond. To my surprise, he didn't complain at all, nor did he even frown. He put down his briefcase and started washing my dishes and began cooking. I was so touched. I marveled at Dafa, that it could make people so tolerant.
On the following day I read an article on the Minghui website that inspired me greatly. I made up my mind to follow Dafa's principles and become an understanding wife and loving mother. From then on, I started doing housework and learning how to cook.
Several years later, my parents came to visit. They were so surprised to see how much I had changed.
My parents did not know the facts about Falun Dafa before then. Additionally, my husband couldn't get a visa to go to China because of his belief in Falun Dafa. This was the main reason they initially objected to our marriage and to my practicing.
Seeing my positive changes and what a good person my husband is, my parents no longer objected to our practicing cultivation. They even told our relatives the facts about Falun Dafa.
My parents often praised my husband. They were happy for me.
We have raised our son to follow the principles of Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance. His school teachers have highly praised his good behavior.
Words cannot express my gratitude to Master Li for turning my life around and giving me the precious chance to cultivate.