My Early Memories
I was born in 1988 and practiced Falun Gong (also known as Falun Dafa) from early childhood. I remember tagging along with families to study groups and morning exercises. I had just started to read and could not comprehend the meaning of cultivation. However, I always knew Dafa was good. Thinking back, I realize how precious those early years were.
The Chinese regime started its persecution of Falun Gong on July 20, 1999. As a Falun Gong practitioner, my elder sister traveled to Beijing several times to protest the persecution. She was taken to labor camps three times, spending ten of her prime years in prison. As I write this sharing, my sister is still locked up in a women's prison in Guangdong Province.
After what happened to my sister, and out of fear for my safety, my father forbade me from practicing Falun Gong. Consequently, I drifted away from cultivation.
Returning to Cultivation
During my teenage years, I became more introverted. I read many books, including philosophical and religious writings. However, I struggled to find purpose in life and was often depressed.
One day in 2011, I suddenly remembered Zhuan Falun (the main text of Falun Gong) and really wanted to read it again. My sister used to read Zhuan Falun aloud to me over ten years ago. I remembered the title of the book but none of the content. I called my mom for a copy. That was how I came back to cultivation.
A couple of days after reading Zhuan Falun, I noticed changes in myself: I slept better, my memory improved, my energy level increased, my mood changed for the better, and studying for classes became much easier⸺I became a new person. I also passed my professional license exam before graduation.
I felt blessed, and the only thing I could do to repay Master for these blessings was to be diligent in my cultivation.
My First Job
My first job placement was not a coincidence. I believe it was planned by Master.
Six months before graduating from college, I applied for an administrative position at a public school. One of the job requirements was a graduate degree in sociology, which I did not have. Nevertheless, I was invited for preliminary testing and a second interview.
I got the position a month later, and tears filled my eyes when I received the good news. This school was located in a beautiful town surrounded by mountains and lakes. Upon seeing the school, my first thought was: “it would be so relaxing to meditate next to the lake.” Master made my wish come true.
Following Higher Standards at Work
As a practitioner, I strived to do the best quality work possible, not for personal recognition but to show the world the benefit of practicing Falun Gong. I always tried to adhere to its standards of Truthfulness, Compassion, and Forbearance.
I regularly reminded myself to be considerate and kind to colleagues, I got along with my supervisors and my coworkers, and people generally thought of me as a gentle and kind young lady.
Practicing Falun Gong also gave me wisdom, which helped me to win multiple research awards in our province and get accepted into graduate school.
Telling Others About Dafa
After receiving many benefits from practicing Falun Gong, I wanted to start a print shop to start making materials that explained the facts about the persecution. On July 18, 2016, the first day of summer vacation, I decided to utilize the summer to make and distribute materials I had printed. There were no other practitioners in my town, and I had no experience in this area, but I still wanted to give it a try.
That was when the trouble began. It took me half an hour to find the place to pick up the printer. I took it as interference. I can see now that Master was trying to point something out to me.
We went to visit my sister in prison the next day. My sister's first words when she saw me was: “Don't pass out pamphlets yet.” This caught me off guard, and I wondered how she knew about my plans for the next day. Again, I took it as interference.
I had a minor car accident later that day, and it was close to midnight when I started heading home. It took me two hours to drive a distance that should have taken me one hour. The highway seemed never-ending that night, yet I still did not see Master's hint.
By the time I finally got to my apartment, I could not find my key, so I ended up spending the night at a hotel.
The next morning, I called maintenance to open my apartment door, grabbed a stack of the pamphlets I had printed, and headed over to my school campus.
Thinking back, Master attempted to stop me for three days. Master saw my eagerness to do something for Dafa, but I did not plan well and did not consider safety. As a result, I was reported by school security.
With permission from the head of our school’s Communist Party Committee, my apartment was ransacked by the local 610 Office, and I spent 29 days in detention. During this time, I could sense Master's protection. I used this opportunity to talk about Falun Gong and the persecution to people I met so that my imprisonment was not completely in vain.
Being an Upright Falun Gong Practitioner
I was released a few days before school started. The school's human resources department suggested that I resign, but my family and I decisively refused. I reasoned that I had not done anything unlawful and was illegally detained for my spiritual belief. Furthermore, I would bring my case to court if the school terminated me.
I was told to return to work the day before school started, and my colleagues treated me as if nothing had happened.
Out of fear, I had never told my colleagues about my cultivation before. Now they knew that harmless people like me are being persecuted for their faith.
The Communist Party leader who sent me to the detention center was demoted that December and transferred to another government agency.
Maintaining Harmony at Home
My family became more understanding of my cultivation after my detention. My fiance, who does not practice Falun Gong, also turned from indifference to being supportive. He sometimes asked me to read Falun Gong books to him.
In the two years after 2016, my fiance's business boomed. He considered this a blessing from Dafa and bought me a new car to show others that Falun Gong practitioners live prosperous lives.
As practitioners, we are not attached to material things or showing off. However, many practitioners' jobs and savings were illegally taken away because of their spiritual belief. Their families were torn apart, and many became homeless. The Chinese Communist Party brainwashes people into believing that Falun Gong practitioners live in poverty and misery. On the contrary, practitioners are the happiest people in the world; we have our Master.
