(Clearwisdom.net) I met Xin Yuan (pseudonym) during the Cultural Revolution (1966-1976), when the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) made almost all high school graduates go to the countryside to do farm jobs, so that we could be “re-educated.” We've been good friends ever since. She gave me a copy of Zhuan Falun in 1995, but I did not become a Dafa practitioner until 1997. Due to the persecution of Falun Gong in 1999 and because of several incidents that happened to her and her family, she left Dafa. The following is a brief story about her.
A Rocky Life
She was born in Beijing. Her father was classified “a landlord” during the land reform era, and the regime consequently confiscated his few dozen inherited mu of land (1 mu equals about 1/6 acre). He was left penniless overnight. To support his family of five, he had no choice but to go to Beijing to accept odd jobs and stay with a relative. His monthly income was a mere 30 yuan, less than US$3.00 back then.
Unfortunately, her mother died when my friend was only ten years old. Her younger sister, brother, her father, and she lived in pain and misery. They barely had enough to eat. Their relatives did not like to lend them money. Nevertheless, they managed to survive with meager food and income for about eight years. Their situation worsened when the communist regime decided to make all high school graduates settle in the countryside. She was no exception. For ten years she worked as a peasant. When she was finally allowed to return to the city in 1979, there was no job for her. She looked everywhere and eventually landed in a small workshop run by a local neighborhood organization. Unhappy with her job, she began to take college classes on TV and finally became an accountant. She was married, too, but her husband contracted liver cancer. She spent all of her savings and income on his treatment, but to no avail. He still died.
She blamed her problems on poor fate. She married again in 2000, to a nice man. Two years later she got breast cancer. After the surgery, her health collapsed. Hopeless, she began to practice a phony Qigong every day for a few years. Her health did not improve. At the time when she was battling breast cancer, her only sister suffered from depression and died in an accident. After that, she lost all hope and believed that she would not live much longer, either. Thinking about her past, she was sure that her future would be full of sadness. Doctors diagnosed her with depression; from then on she depended on medicine. She was frail, weak, and lived in misery and bitterness.
Overcoming Depression
Since I had not seen her for a while, I called her several times in August 2010 and finally found her. I went to her home and was stunned to see what had become of her. In only a couple of years her former rosy cheeks had been replaced by a pale complexion and a sad look. Seeing her wrinkled face and gray hair, I could not help but cry.
She was surprised when she saw me, “You have changed a lot. Your face used to be dark and ill, but now your cheeks are rosy, and all the wrinkles are gone, too. You look like you are in your 40s, even though you are already over 60 years old. Your voice is energetic, and your stride is light, too.”
We chatted for the whole day. I told her of my Dafa cultivation experiences - how I worked to improve my xinxing and how my worldview had changed. She could see the physical changes in me. She listened carefully, with an eager look. She also told me of her experiences and her misery. I told her, “Cultivating Dafa is your only way out of misery. No other Qigong practice can help eliminate the source of all problems, karma. No matter how much we suffer in this lifetime, we’re here to obtain Dafa. You’ve practiced Falun Gong before. Don’t let this final opportunity pass you by.”
After pondering it seriously, she decided to return to Dafa cultivation. She finished reading Zhuan Falun in two days, and practiced the five exercises twice a day. Within two weeks she had changed completely. She was no longer as tired when she walked; her cheeks became rosy again; her face had fewer wrinkles; and she was not as skinny and frail as before. She is now optimistic and has completely come out of her depression. She has joined the team to walk on the path of validating the Fa. Besides studying the Fa by herself every day, she also joins group Fa study and sends righteous thoughts. Furthermore, she helps clarify the truth to people. She told me, “I truly want to thank you for rescuing me. I must cultivate till the end.” I replied, “It’s Master, not me, who’s saved you. Master has also saved me. It is Master who’s given both of us new lives. It’s the Buddha Law that has created us. We must cultivate well together, to catch up with the progress of the Fa-rectification to return to our original homes with Master.”
