(Clearwisdom.net) Mr. Zhao Lin (a pseudonym used to protect his identity) is a farmer from a small village in Hebei Province. Surrounded by mountains, the air is fresh, the people are kind and live a relaxed, simple lifestyle.
Mr. Zhao's wife practices Falun Gong and is constantly harassed by officials from the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). They try to force her to renounce her belief in Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance. Although Mr. Zhao does not practice, he is fully supportive of his wife, and says, "I wouldn't be able to stand her if she didn't practice Falun Gong!"
The following is the transcript from an interview with Mr. Zhao.
Reporter: How did you hear about Falun Gong?
Mr. Zhao: I learned about it through my wife. She began practicing Falun Gong on February 1, 1999 [lunar calendar]. I remember this vividly. My wife had a high temperature, upset stomach and was nauseous two weeks earlier. She was put on a variety of medication, but none of them helped. Then she heard that someone in the village was teaching Falun Gong, so she decided to go along, and went with some other people she knew. When she returned home, her temperature had already dropped. She thought the thermometer was not working properly at first, but the fever was indeed gone, as had the various other illnesses. It was amazing! The first time for attending a Falun Gong exercise class was more beneficial than what Chinese and Western medicine could offer. I thought it was unbelievable and supported her to continue. I also read the book Zhuan Falun, which teaches people to conduct one's life according to Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance.
Reporter: How did your wife change after she practiced Falun Gong? How did that affect your life?
Mr. Zhao: She changed a great deal. Because she was very ill before, she had a bad temper. Any time I said something, she would always give a retort. She would refuse to cook if she was angry, and would refuse to eat, even if I cooked for her. Now my wife is healthy, she is very sweet and considerate. She never quarrels with me, no matter what I say. She also has a great relationship with our neighbors, because she always thinks of others first. She arranges the work in the field and the housework very well and always finishes her chores early. She studies Falun Gong books and does the exercises in the evenings. I support her, because she takes care of everything. My mother and aunt saw the great changes in her and also began practicing Falun Gong.
Reporter: Have you been affected by the persecution?
Mr. Zhao: Yes. In the autumn of 1999, officers from the county police department arrested my wife and detained her for 15 days. They extorted 2,000 yuan from her, and said that it was a fine. She was arrested again on December 31, 2001, and held at the county detention center for 111 days, and they extorted over 2,000 yuan from her. She was later imprisoned in the Shijiazhuang Labor Camp and was forced to pay 5,000 yuan. My wife has been detained three times and had a total of 9,000 yuan extorted from her. I believed in the lies on TV back then, such as the Tiananmen Square self-immolation incident, and was afraid for her personal safety, so I forbade her to practice. I believed the CCP's deceptive propaganda and thought she was bringing trouble to our family, making the family feel ashamed in front of fellow villagers. I also blamed her because of the financial loss we had to suffer as a result of her upholding her belief.
Reporter: Did you feel the pressure?
Mr. Zhao: Yes. When she was arrested, I was left with two children and six cows to take care of. I was under a great deal of pressure and was upset. I kept blaming her.
Reporter: So, when did you change your mind about Falun Gong?
Mr. Zhao: In 2004. I watched a series of DVD's produced by practitioners. That was when I learned that the CCP had staged the self-immolation incident to frame Falun Gong. I was eventually able to watch NTDTV and often saw programs such as "Today's Focus," with its call-in hotline. I thought, "I'm not highly educated, but people with PhD's and scientists also practice Falun Gong. It is being practiced in over 100 countries. The main book Zhuan Falun has been translated into more than 20 languages, and the practice has received more than 3,000 proclamations," which shows this is a wonderful practice that makes positive contributions to society and mankind. I asked myself, "Why would a government do such terrible things to its own people?" I have now finally seen through the evil nature of the communist specter.
Reporter: I heard two really amazing episodes happened at your home
Mr. Zhao: That's right. My mother also practices Falun Gong. At the age of 82, she fell off a ladder on August 26, 2005 [lunar calendar], and landed straight onto a grinding stone, and her head hit the stone steps. Her lower back was severely bruised and was knocked unconscious. We were terrified. When she regained consciousness, she told us not to worry about her because Master was looking after her. In the days that followed, she listened to Master's lectures every day, and soon recovered completely.
The second had to do with my granddaughter. After the first month celebration of her birth, we noticed that her left leg and foot was bent inward by about 40 degrees, making her leg look like a sickle. We took her to a hospital and were told she would have to undergo surgery when she was one year old, and that the surgery would cost at least 10,000 yuan. My wife told my daughter-in-law, "When you wake up every morning, say 'Falun Dafa is good' several times. Be persistent and sincere, and the baby's leg will get straight for sure!" She did, and after about eight months, the infant's leg had noticeably turned, and by ten months of age, her leg and foot were completely normal. She is now learning to walk and doesn't have any problems at all.
My mother and granddaughter never had medication or injections, and Dafa completely healed them. These incidents became the talk of my village for a long time, as they are living proof of the amazing power of Dafa.
To be honest, I wouldn't be able to stand my wife if she wasn't practicing Falun Gong right now! So I support her one hundred percent. I have benefited much from Dafa over the years and cannot express my appreciation enough. I simply feel gratitude for everything Dafa has bestowed upon my family. Falun Dafa is indeed wonderful!
Reporter: Do you want to say something to people who don't know Falun Gong very well?
Mr. Zhao: Yes. I want to say to my fellow county-people: Falun Dafa is good! Please, do not believe in the communist regime's vicious lies! Find out for yourself what Falun Dafa is really about. You won't regret it. I want to say these words from the bottom of my heart, "Falun Dafa is good!"
