(Minghui.org) In a society with declining morality, how to keep children's souls from being hurt and contaminated is a must for their healthy growth. It's also an issue that parents and society must consider seriously.
In the past several years, I have often looked after two children from two families. Both their mothers worked overseas. One was then a boy in kindergarten, whom I took care of for three years until he went to elementary school. The other was then a junior high school student, whom I took care of for four years before he went to college.
During my time with them, I saw their wish and understood a principle–that a kind heart and decency must be nurtured from a very young age. I also witnessed the rewards—energy—that arises from the quality of kindness.
In 2013, I started taking care of a four-year-old boy who was naughty and temperamental but had a sense of justice. His kindergarten teacher said, “This boy's parents should prepare themselves since he’ll be a trouble-maker in the future.”
He stood motionless while other kids danced together. His teacher could do nothing to change him. When I picked him up after school, all the other kids held some papers, but he had nothing. When I asked his teacher about it, his teacher said, “He refuses to do anything. What could I do?”
His sister’s husband told me that no one could persuade him to obey anyone. His father had tried many times but was unsuccessful. I talked to the boy's teacher earlier about my own idea on how to educate him.
Once, the boy wanted to eat something that was not good for him. I didn't allow him to eat it, so he cried very loudly. I was not moved at all no matter how hard he cried. The boy stopped crying when he was tired. I put my arm around him and patted him while singing the song “Falun Dafa Is Good” until he went to sleep.
I realized the boy wanted motherly love. His own mother was away for long periods of time, and what he needed were love and warmth.
I believed that my guidance from Falun Dafa—the principles of Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance—would bring the child the most sincere love. I knew that in a harmonious environment, this child would grow healthily and happily. As I sang “Falun Dafa Is Good,” he and I were immersed in the harmonious environment of pure compassion. As he fell asleep, he burst into laughter, and I could see his joy at that point.
After that, he became very close to me. HE began to trust me and was not as temperamental as before. I treated him LIKE my own grandson and took tender care of him in those three years. I told him stories almost every night before he fell asleep. Most of the stories I told him were about traditional culture.
Gradually the boy developed his own standard of good behavior and was able to distinguish right from wrong. He also recognized the goodness of Falun Dafa and naturally developed a good character. Even at his young age, he was tolerant and truthful and respected the elderly, his parents, and teachers.
He no longer made trouble for his teacher in kindergarten. He was very cooperative and active. His teacher told me that when most of her students rushed to come in first, he would stand quietly and let others in before him. The teacher said she sometimes purchased ice cream bars or snacks for her students, and he was the only one in the class who showed appreciation.
The boy is now in elementary school. When I visited him several days ago, his mother shared with me how strong the boy had become. He had won awards in a kickboxing competition. Yet, when his classmates bullied him, he never fought back. This pained his father. He advised the boy to fight back to deter the bullying, but the boy didn't follow his father's advice.
The boy who had often made other students cry in kindergarten had changed. The principles of Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance have truly taken root in his heart. I believe that such a good child will be blessed.
He told me that he was not allowed to participate in a math competition at his kindergarten because he was not doing well in math at that time. He then talked to the founder of Falun Dafa, Master Li Hongzhi, in his heart. “Master,” he said, “I want to win an award in this competition.” His teacher asked him to join the competition that day, and, even more amazingly, he won first place.
He shared with me another similar experience. He was not among the competitors in a city-level competition, yet the day before, he was told to participate in it. Other competitors had trained for a long time, but he never received any training. The next morning, before he went to the competition, he thought of Master's teachings:
“When people show the appropriate respect and reverence toward Dafa as it manifests here in this world, they, their race, or their nation will enjoy blessings or honor.” (Lunyu)
I told the boy to sit down and read ten times “Falun Dafa is good.” He followed my advice and won an award in the competition. His teacher and parents were all excited about it.
During the three years I cared for the boy, he never went to the hospital for shots except for one time. When I first arrived, his father took him because he was constantly coughing. The boy coughed often before I took care of him. Thanks to Master's protection, his coughing disappeared completely. The boy witnessed the miraculous experience himself. One year, he insisted on sending a greeting card to Master that said “Happy Birthday.”
About ten years ago, I took care of a junior high school student. His parents had divorced, and his father and step-mother worked abroad.
When I started taking care of him, he was preparing for a high school entrance exam. He was under great pressure to enter a good high school because his academic performance was not very good.
The boy had positive views about Falun Dafa. I asked him to study a paragraph of Fa together with me every evening. I used breakfast and dinner times to tell him about Dafa. He was very supportive of my practice of Dafa. When he took the entrance exam, he was admitted to the school he wanted with 120 points more than in an average test.
At first, he could not keep pace with his studies. Also, it was unfortunate that he had not seen his mother since he was four. He felt hurt and depressed and behaved erratically.
His mother wanted to get him back in bad ways. She tried to stop him from preparing for his college entrance exams. Once, she even went to his school and took his schoolbag, which embarrassed him in front of his classmates. The next day, he refused to get out of bed and go to school.
I used the principles of Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance to guide him and help him dissolve his conflicts with his mother. I persuaded and encouraged him to continue his studies. I listed his many good qualities. “When others can't make it,” I said to him, “you can make it. Once you make it, your classmates will all admire you. Just think: you have been denied recognition and admiration. An average person can’t endure this, but you can. You've suffered so much. Are you an average person? Absolutely not.”
He got up and asked me to give him a plastic bag to use as a school bag. I found a nice-looking bag for him. He put his textbooks in it and went to school. Though he was late, his classmates were shocked that he even came and looked at him with admiration. He was greatly encouraged.
Because his academic performance was not good enough, he considered not taking the college entrance exam. Then, he had a dream in which the Master of Falun Dafa told him he would be admitted by an excellent university because he had virtue for having protected a Dafa practitioner. This dream became a reality. He went to the outstanding university and found a high-paying job in a big city after graduation.