(Minghui.org) My current job is cooking and cleaning for a small company of 20 employees. I follow the requirements of the managers and complete every assignment conscientiously.
I live in a three-bedroom apartment with several employees. They sleep in the bedrooms, and I sleep in the kitchen. The bedrooms have air conditioning and heating, but the kitchen does not, so it is hot in the summer and cold in the winter.
In summer, the roommates told me to use the air conditioning in the living room and turn it off when the manager is around. I told them I couldn't, because the manager had bought me a fan, and it would be considered stealing if I used the air conditioning without authorization.
When my roommates ran out of daily supplies, they would take some home from the office. They offered some of the goods to me, but I said, “I practice Falun Gong and strive to conduct myself by the principles of 'Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance' to become a better person. I cannot take anything that doesn't belong to me. I believe in 'no loss, no gain.' Everyone has a path, and if you take something that belongs to others, you will eventually lose, which may be in the form of losing money, having an unfortunate occurrence or having a bad day at work.”
I do the cleaning without being asked after my roommates leave the apartment. I turn off the air conditioning and lights if they are left on in their rooms, and remind them to save water and electricity when I see them. I bought daily necessities to share using my own savings so they could stop taking things from the office.
Some employees told the managers about me, saying that this Falun Gong nanny was different from the previous nannies. The four managers decided to give me cash to buy groceries at the outdoor market instead of having me buy groceries at supermarkets and reimbursing me afterward, because food is less expensive and fresher at the market.
I asked, “Can you trust me?”
They told me, “We trust Falun Gong practitioners.”
Before I became a practitioner, I was proud, arrogant and loved gaining trifling advantages. I had many diseases and couldn't have children. I sought treatment for sterility for nine years, but nothing worked. Because of this, my husband rarely smiled at me and his family treated me like a stranger. To me, life was meaningless.
I had the good fortune to start practicing Falun Gong in 1996. After reading Zhuan Falun, I understood that the book is the Buddha Law that teaches people to practice cultivation according to the principles of Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance and is very profound.
I started conducting myself according to those principles. And my view of the world changed. I became very healthy and energetic, and I lived happily every day.
I found an abandoned infant one day and took her home. My husband didn't want her and often picked a fight with me. He didn't do any housework after coming home from work. I ran a snack business and had to do all the housework, so I only slept three or four hours a day. I never fought back when my husband swore at me or abused me, and I bore no resentment toward him.
Five months after practicing Falun Gong, I became pregnant without any treatment. It was a miracle! My husband changed his attitude toward me. I gave birth to a son. I was really lucky to have practiced Falun Gong!
After witnessing how I had changed for the better, some of my friends and relatives started reciting “Falun Dafa is Good! Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance is Good!” Some of them had suffered from illnesses for which doctors could not find a cure, and after reciting those words, their illnesses disappeared. They were amazed by Falun Gong and were very happy.
Because I took profit lightly and never fought for it, my relatives all liked me. The elder relatives on my husband's side praised me for being the best daughter-in-law, and the ones on my parents' side praised me for being the most filial.
Some people said it was a blessing to be my neighbor. I had neighbors who couldn't afford some appliances, and I let those neighbors use mine. I cleaned various parts of the public areas in my building. Generally, I didn't mind suffering losses, and I conducted myself according to Falun Gong’s principles.
I never badmouthed anyone when speaking to my neighbors. When others complained about one another in front of me, I tried to persuade them to be good and to untie the knots in their heart.
My husband's family used to be landlords and were persecuted by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) during the Land Reform Campaign in the 1950s. When the CCP, directed by then CCP leader Jiang Zemin, started persecuting Falun Gong in July 1999, my husband was afraid of being implicated, and he objected to me continuing to practice.
He said, “Falun Gong has been wronged, but can't you resume practicing when things have changed in the future?”
“No, I have benefited from Falun Gong, so I will tell others the facts about it,” I replied.
Because of my belief, the local 610 Office and police department manipulated my husband to persecute me. He tied me up and beat me. He wouldn’t let me sleep and would make me do the housework during the day and he kicked me out at night. I bore no resentment toward him and treated him nicely despite what he did to me.
I later left home and became a domestic helper in another city. I conducted myself according to the Falun Gong principles in each home, and strived to do my job well. I strictly followed the requirements of every head of household that I worked for, and purchased groceries without taking a penny that wasn’t mine.
I typically ate leftovers so as to not waste any food. I told people the facts about the persecution of Falun Gong to the members of every household I worked in. Almost every family tried to convince me to stay and praised me for being responsible. They often told me that people like me were hard to find.
I have come to understand that when I truly conduct myself according to Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance, be selfless, altruistic and kind to others, withdraw myself from conflicts and competition for profit, take humiliation lightly and raise my mind and heart nature, cultivation practice is limitless. I also understand that I have a lot of room to improve and need to strive to do better.