(Minghui.org) May 13 this year marks the 22^nd World Falun Dafa Day as well as the 29^th anniversary of Falun Dafa’s introduction to the public. It is also the 70th birthday of Mr. Li Hongzhi, the founder of Falun Dafa.

Thousands of miles away, a family in Umeå, a Swedish city in the north, sent in their greetings to Master Li, thanking him for the happiness they have received from practicing Falun Dafa and wishing him a happy birthday.

Wife: Better Relationships with Others

Jörgen and Eva, husband and wife, along with their three children, have all benefited from Falun Dafa.

Eva has a Master's degree in biology and works as a news reporter. She and her husband Jörgen have three children. Since Eva and Jörgen started practicing Falun Dafa the family of five has lived in more harmony.

She used to have a strong ego and a selfish character. After becoming a Falun Dafa practitioner in 2006, Eva always reminded herself to live by its principles of Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance. “Instead of covering up my shortcomings, I learned to look within and see where I could have done better,” she explained. “This helped me a lot and I realized lots of problems were caused by the selfishness and attachment to myself.”

Eva does the second set of Falun Dafa exercises in the morning.

This way, Eva, instead of complaining, tried to find compassion and tolerance. Sometimes she could achieve it and sometimes she could not. “But I know what is right and will do my best to handle difficulties in life according to the core principles of Falun Dafa,” she said. Gradually her character improved and she noticed that each time she managed situations by looking within and letting go of things like fear and selfishness the pressure surrounding her was reduced. She could get along better with others, including family members. “That is why I am always so grateful to Master for everything,” she said.

Husband: Healthy and Energetic

Jörgen has a Ph.D. in environmental studies and is a high school teacher. As a materialist, he was stubborn with his own ideas and easily dismissed things that cannot be explained by science.

After he and Eva got married in 2007, they sometimes discussed life and self-improvement. But because he had never thought deeper about life before he didn’t have any interest in having a deeper philosophy about life. He was happy enough without thinking about it.

However, Jörgen did have the thought that if he just had more energy he would start practicing. After two years he realized that there was no use waiting, and he started reading Zhuan Falun, the main teachings of Falun Dafa. Seeing Eva’s positive experience had made him curious. He found that the history explained in Zhuan Falun seemed more logical than the history commonly accepted. He realized how the book was a positive guide through life.

For a long time Jörgen had been pessimistic about life and often got tired. He was dependent on a nap every day, and for a period also had heart problems. His doctor could not find the problem and recommended an antidepressant medication. Jörgen decided that before he tried the medicine he would look within and see how he could improve himself.

Eva said that it didn't take long until she had a completely different husband. He realized that he had a negative mindset. After studying Falun Gong he developed a different way of seeing the world and what happened around him. This way he managed to turn things around for himself and never needed the antidepressant medication.

Jörgen also put more effort into doing the exercises regularly, and combined with changing his mindset he regained his health and got increasingly more energy. In addition, his temper improved and his children found him more patient.

Daughter: Insomnia Disappeared

In addition to following the Falun Dafa teachings to be good people themselves, the couple also talked about the principles of Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance with their children. They often highlighted the importance of virtue, and occasionally the children also do the Dafa exercises based on their schedule. The effects have been remarkable.

Malva, the oldest child, was bothered by insomnia since the age of 10. The couple tried various solutions, but none of them helped. “One summer evening, Malva came and joined our Dafa exercises with the local group. We shortened the time so that it could work out for her,” Eva recalled. “After we arrived home, Malva fell asleep right away. We knew it was because of the exercises. So everyone was very happy.”

After that, Malva started meditating before going to bed. Ten minutes was enough to help her calm down, Eva explained. She almost never had insomnia again. With enough sleep, her emotions have also become more stable and her temper has improved a lot.

Eva also said that one of her younger boys sometimes had stomachaches or headaches. After he experienced that exercising gave him relief he made a habit of meditating on his own when he had physical problems like that. As a wife and a mother, Eva said she is grateful to Master Li for all that Falun Dafa has brought to her and her family.