(Minghui.org) I was immersed in Dafa when I was young. I had an innocent nature and many innate qualities. Though I did not recognize many Chinese characters at the age of five, I was able to memorize poems from Hong Yin and Hong Yin II just by listening to my mother read them.
My legs were very flexible and I was able to sit in the full lotus position for a long time. I could see Master sitting on a lotus flower in other dimensions. Falun Dafa has long been rooted in my heart.
My grades were excellent when I was in the first and second grades. At the time, I memorized the poems and studied the Fa with my mother. Though I was mischievous at home, ours was a happy family and I have wonderful memories of my childhood.
A turning point came in my life when I attended third grade. I went to live with my paternal grandparents because their home was closer to school. I only stayed with my maternal grandparents during the holidays. I gradually slid away from Dafa as I encountered ordinary people at school.
My parents started to have arguments and problems at home, and my mother began to slack off in studying the Fa while I was being contaminated by the big dye vat of ordinary society. I began to exhibit naughty behavior with a violent streak. My grades started to decline drastically.
By the time I entered high school, my grades were among the lowest, and I suffered both physically and mentally at school. Because I didn’t complete my homework or know what was going on in class, my teachers criticized me. My classmates didn’t like me and there was lots of peer pressure. A day seemed like a year and I was miserable.
Between my life and my studies, I seemed trapped in a vicious cycle. My health was getting worse, and I looked dull and tired. Facing the prevailing modernist thinking and homosexuality at my high school, I could not withstand isolation and started reading fantasy novels in my spare time. I was gnawed away at by the demon of lust and rotten devils. Though I still occasionally thought about Dafa, most of my time was spent at school.
I became gravely ill during my third year of high school. Because my grades were among the lowest in my class and I’d missed out on a lot of school because I was ill, it seemed highly unlikely that I would pass the National College Entrance Exam. My father wept at night and did not know what to do.
I took both Chinese and Western medications but none of them seemed to work. On the contrary, I got sicker. I was in misery and couldn’t fall asleep at night. I moaned in silence, afraid that my father would hear me.
Seeing how desperate I was, my mother encouraged me to believe in Dafa and stop all the medications. I was determined to overcome my father’s interfering with my studying the Fa. I insisted on reading one lecture of Zhuan Falun every day. My grandmother asked other practitioners in our local Fa study group to send righteous thoughts for me.
Black substances began to fall out of me every day, and I knew that Master was cleansing my body. Within a little over one week, all the pain in my body was gone. I realized that I could not return to the state of an ordinary person. Master had arranged for me to restart my cultivation. I decided to genuinely cultivate no matter what lay ahead.
I began to study hard at school during the day and then study the Fa at night, despite feeling tired. Before taking the National College Entrance Exam, I finished reading The Ultimate Goal of Communism and Minghui Weekly. I only slept four to five hours a night, but I did not get tired. During this time, Master gave me hints and encouraged me.
My grades improved by 20 points in two months, and I was accepted by an excellent university.
I wanted to participate after reading the notice “Call for Submissions to Commemorate World Falun Dafa Day 2021,” but I hesitated since I had not cultivated for long.
In the article on Minghui.org “Let’s Hurry Up--Don’t Put Off Writing Articles to Commemorate World Falun Dafa Day,” the practitioner wrote, “If we hand in a blank examination paper, how can we explain it? As we reach consummation and return to our heavenly abodes, the sentient beings we are responsible for may ask why we did not participate in submitting articles back then.” “Good Articles Are a Reflection of a Good Cultivation State” “Everyone’s path is different and we just need to record our experience as well as understandings of the Fa in our sharing articles. When we share our struggles, joy, and appreciation, readers could be moved by our modest language and real experience.”
I decided to participate after reading that article. I wanted to let everyone in the world learn about Falun Dafa while also expressing my utmost gratitude to Master.
I like to draw and paint during my free time. I was awarded first place in a children’s drawing contest. I also came in first place in a children’s Chinese painting contest. With my foundation in art, I decided to create an art piece to validate Dafa.
I made several conspicuous mistakes in my first effort because I had the attachment of zealotry and the mentality of showing off. I tried three more times and still wasn’t satisfied.
I was unable to draw for a week because of my studies, and I was dissatisfied with myself because I knew I could do much better. I knew that doing Dafa projects was a reflection of my cultivation state. The reason I could not draw that well was because my cultivation was not up to par.
After reciting several of Master’s poems in Hong Yin IV, studying Master’s other lectures, and sending forth righteous thoughts, I finished my drawing in one go. Although it was not perfect, it was satisfactory. I enlightened that we should not forget to study the Fa and cultivate ourselves by looking inward at all times.
Though it was an art submission to Minghui.org, it’s not easy to be perfect. Practitioners have endured a lot while making truth-clarification materials. Thank you, Master, for giving me a new life, a cultivation environment, and an opportunity to validate Dafa.