(Minghui.org) In the past, when I visited my son in the city to see my grandchild, I saw that the kitchen stove was always a mess. As soon as I arrived there, my daughter-in-law stopped cooking, and I had to do it all. In order to harmonize the relationship, my son said, “Mother, I want to eat your fried burgers.” Or “Mom, I want to eat your stir-fried sauerkraut.” I know my son has never been picky when eating, the fact was that my daughter-in-law didn’t want to cook. Every time I endured it, I blamed my son in my heart: “Well, are you afraid you won’t be able to get a wife? She treats your mother like this, and you don’t dare to say a fair word. What a mess!” I always felt aggrieved.
Changing My Notion, Elevating My Xinxing
The next time I went to my son’s, the kitchen was even messier, and the stove was worse than usual. It was full of pots, pans, bowls, spoons, and chopsticks, and there were noodles, fruits, and vegetables scattered all over the floor. There was no place to walk. I was really worried. It hadn’t been like this before I told them to clean the kitchen. I thought, “This has happened because of me, it’s really bad.” I really wanted to get angry and make a scene.
At that point, I remembered Master’s Fa:
“In truth, the spiritual journey is none other than an ongoing process of learning to let go of the things of this world that we may be attached to.” (The First Talk, Zhuan Falun)
“For a cultivator, looking within is a magical tool.” (“Fa Teaching at the 2009 Washington DC International Fa Conference,” Collected Fa Teachings, Vol. IX)
I took all this as a test from Master. I first looked for my own attachments and found arrogance, showing off, competition, complaint, resentment, being aggrieved, and an unbalanced mindset. I decided to get rid of these human attachments and stop having a bad opinion of my daughter-in-law.
I treated my son and daughter-in-law as sentient beings who are watching my every word and deed because I am a Falun Dafa practitioner. Only when I do a good job can they realize that Falun Dafa is good and thus be saved by Falun Dafa. After greeting my daughter-in-law and grandson, I went into the kitchen to clean up and then cooked dinner.
After staying for two days, I went home. On the way home, I thought: When I go to my son’s place again in the future, I will treat the kitchen as a place for me to cultivate. It is a good place for me to elevate my xinxing, and I will cultivate like a “little monk.” Because Master said,
“Going through hardship and suffering is an outstanding opportunity to remove karma, be cleansed of sin, purify the body, elevate your plane of thought, and rise in level—it’s an extraordinarily good thing. This is a correct and upright Fa-truth.” (“The Closer to the End, the More Diligent You Should Be,” The Essentials of Diligent Progress III)
Daughter-in-law's Attitude Changes
Master said,
“And it really is so. It’s an outlook you only stand to benefit from. So the next time you are going through a real trial or tribulation, try to keep this in mind and see if you can bear it. Or when faced with what seems impossible, and even if others say so, try to keep this in mind, and see if it might just be possible. I believe that if you can do that, you will always find that there is light at the end of the tunnel.” (The Ninth Talk, Zhuan Falun)
A year ago, I went to the city again. Before I went, I called to tell my son. When I got to his place, I saw my daughter-in-law cooking in the kitchen. After greeting my son and grandson, I went into the kitchen as usual. My daughter-in-law smiled and said, “Mother, there is no need for you to help in the kitchen. The rice is ready, I will fry two more dishes, and we will eat. Just play with your grandson for a while. Your grandson misses you, too.” At that moment, my grandson said, “Grandma, don’t cook. Play with me.” He pulled me by the hand and ran to the living room. At night, my grandson slept with me.
The next morning, before my grandson woke up, I got up and went into the kitchen to make breakfast. My grandson ran into the kitchen and used his little hands to untie my apron. I said, “Hey! What are you doing, Grandson?” He said, “I don’t want grandma to cook, I want mommy to cook.”
At that time, my son and daughter-in-law also got up. My daughter-in-law said, “Mother, you can just play with your grandson while I cook!” I said to my grandson, “Doesn’t your mother always cook for you? Grandma is here, let your mother take a break, okay?” My grandson said, “No, no, I want my mom to cook.” I asked, “Why?” My grandson said mischievously, “Because you are my grandma.” He took my hand and went straight to the living room to play.
When I was eating, my daughter-in-law poured me a soda first, and when she asked my grandson to share the food, he always gave me a little more. I asked him, “Why do you give me more?” He said, “Because you are my father’s mother and my grandmother, that’s what my mother said.”
My daughter-in-law said to my son, “Hey, how nice it would be if my aunt was like Mom!” Her aunt was away working all the time and didn’t come home. My daughter-in-law was brought up by her grandmother until she reached the age of nine, and she has been worrying about her grandmother’s physical and mental health. My daughter-in-law even said, “Mother, my grandmother always praises you for being so nice and tells me to treat you well!”
It is so good to cultivate solidly and look within. I know Master is encouraging me. Thank you, Master!
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Category: Improving Oneself
