(Minghui.org) I have been a Falun Dafa practitioner since 1995. During these 17 years of cultivation practice, I have come to understand the purpose of life and learned the importance of being a good person.
I had a very bad temper prior to my Dafa cultivation practice. When involved in a conflict I would not give in an inch and I would fight to win no matter what. I had big fights with my husband every three days, and small fights with him every day. I once even slapped my mother-in-law and argued with her for three hours. The argument ended only after my husband was forced to go back to his parents' home. I now regret this. It is said that of all the kindnesses in the world, respecting the elderly is number one. Not only had I not respected my mother-in-law, but I also complained about her being more fond of her other children. I did not realize then that mothers and their children are together in this life due to karmic ties and issues of retribution. In my ignorance, I generated a lot of karma for myself. Writing this article is an opportunity to express my deep regret to my mother-in-law. I want my mother-in-law to know that I am sorry for my past disrespect and hope she will please forgive my ignorance.
For me, cultivation practice in Falun Dafa has been a process of change in my notions. Prior to practicing, I was shrewd and savvy. I did not think there was anything wrong with this and, instead, thought I was being smart. Since becoming a cultivator, I have looked at things from a completely different perspective.
I worked part time at a restaurant in 2007. Every day from 11:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m., I worked two hours and made only 10 yuan. The restaurant was located near a school, so the customers were mostly students from that school. I told my boss that I practiced Falun Dafa and told others at the restaurant the facts about Dafa. I told them that Falun Dafa teaches people to cultivate Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance. I let them know that this meant that one should say and do things truthfully, be kind to others, and endure all things in daily life. After my boss heard what I said, she was very delighted and said, "Madam, please stay here and work for me." I was almost 50 then, but she had me serve behind the reception desk and had another person over ten years younger than me wash dishes in the back. Every day I came in early and left late, and I took care of my job and helped others without seeking rewards. Once in a while, a student might forget to take his money or belongings with him when he left the restaurant. Whenever I found them while cleaning, I always turned them in to the boss instead of keeping them for myself. A family member of my boss would then return the belongings to the customer. Whenever she paid my salary at the end of the month, my boss always tried to give me extra money, but I always politely refused. I told her I would only accept the money I had actually earned. She was happy and touched.
Since the restaurant closed when school was not in session, I usually took another job during the summer and winter breaks and went back to work in the restaurant when school reopened. At one point, I was working in a hotel, and my job was cleaning the rooms. I frequently found money or other things that people had left behind in their rooms after checking out. Sometimes these items were quite expensive. I always handed them in to the front desk. When I started working at the hotel, I let them know of my beliefs and that I would be returning to the restaurant to work when it reopened. They acknowledged this and let me have the job. They noticed that I was a good worker, taking all assignments without any complaints, and helping out others whenever needed. Thus, when I returned to work at the restaurant, the hotel sent someone to ask me to return to the hotel again when school closed. The restaurant also expressed their intention to keep me. They said, "The Falun Dafa practitioner is such a nice person. Wouldn't society be better off if everyone practiced Falun Dafa? The persecution of such kind people indicates that the Chinese Communist Party is about to come to an end."
I kept these jobs for two years. Apart from buying a 180-yuan cell phone, an 80-yuan MP3 player, and using 120 yuan for two calling cards, I donated all my income from these jobs to a Dafa material production site. I wished to help produce more truth-clarification materials to save people. I did this because of Master's teaching telling me to be an unselfish person and to put others ahead of me. My good behavior enabled others to see the beauty of Dafa through me.
At home, I also behaved strictly according to the standards required by Dafa. My husband, the oldest child in the family, has one younger brother and two younger sisters. Last year my father-in-law expressed his intention to give the family inheritance to the younger brother and gave him a family estate. So his younger brother's family of three moved into the 80-square-meter new apartment, while the parents kept the 60-square-meter old apartment. My father-in-law said the old apartment would be given to the oldest son (my husband). My husband felt bad that his younger sisters were not given anything, so he said to his father, "Dad, if you give me the apartment, I will sell it and share equally with my sisters." When the younger brother learned about this, he wanted a share, too. My husband went home and consulted with me. I told him, "I believe that we should give it up completely; we will not take it."
I told my husband this story: "In the past, two families were neighbors. They fought over a wall that they wanted to build. One of the two families had a relative that worked in the imperial court, so the family wrote a letter to this relative asking for his help. The relative soon replied, saying, 'Sending a letter from thousands of miles away just for a piece of wall! Does it matter to give in three feet to the other? See, the Great Wall is still standing, but there is no first Emperor Qin Shihuang now.'" As I finished talking, I tapped lightly on the wall and said, "A hundred years from now, will this family wall be yours or mine? After we die, we can take nothing with us. After our daughter is married and leaves this home, won't this two-rooms-with-a-kitchen apartment be more than enough for us? As the oldest son in the family, do you understand what this means?" He looked at me and shook his head. I told him, "The oldest brother is almost like a father who needs to support the family. When the parents are gone, shall we fight with our siblings about inheritance and not take care of the younger brother and sisters? We will not be happy, even if we have millions and good material things, if the family is not in harmony and relationships destroyed. Master Li told us in Zhuan Falun, “If something is yours, you will not lose it; if something is not yours, you will not have it even if you fight for it.”
The next day, my husband went to visit his parents. When he returned he told me that his father had asked him, “What does your wife say about this situation?” He said, “I told my father, 'My wife said to give up the property. She did not want me to take it, telling me not to fight with my younger brother and sisters.' My father quickly replied, 'See, the oldest daughter-in-law is the best. Someone practicing Falun Dafa is so noble.'"
I frequently remind my husband to look for the positive qualities in others. I suggest he review all that he did during the day to see if he did anything to offend others. Others can do wrong to us, but we definitely should not do any wrong to others. If we do not pay back what we have owed others in this lifetime, we will have to pay them back in subsequent lifetimes.
Others can tell from me and my actions that Dafa is good, and I am very glad about this. If I did not practice Falun Dafa, I would definitely not have chosen to give the apartment up.
With over ten years of Falun Dafa cultivation practice, my mind is becoming broader and I am taking fame and profits much more lightly. My thoughts are further and further away from the Communist Party's evil nature. Due to several decades of Chinese Communist Party rule, people's minds are messed up, and they are not able to tell right from wrong. Those who join the evil Party, its Youth League or Young Pioneers must swear to work their whole lives for it. They are expected to even give up their own lives for the Party. How evil that is! May everyone break away from this cult as early as possible, quit the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) and its affiliated organizations, and welcome a bright future.
Category: Improving Oneself
