(Clearwisdom.net) There is a Chinese saying that, 'Man's gravest mistake is to enter the wrong career.' I used to think I had entered the wrong career. I am running a community convenience store, with lots of competition, but very little profit. Most stores are family oriented. Summer trading hours are 6am-11pm, and winter being 7am-10pm. I am the only employee. My wife works in the office and my child goes to school. The noon and 6 p.m. global sending forth righteous thoughts times are our business peak times, and I have to find another time to make up. I have to study the Fa when there is no business, but there is always an individual that comes in here and there. I have to put the book down several times during each section of a lecture. I study the Fa together with my wife and child for 15-30 minutes after closing at 11pm until we send righteous thoughts at midnight.
During the noon and 6pm peak times, I cannot handle the store by myself. My wife always runs back from work to help me. During the weekends, my wife has to do the laundry, visit my parents and parents-in-law, then gives me a break to let me pass out materials outside to clarify the truth.
I often discuss with my wife, “We are cultivators. As long as we have food and shelter, we don't pursue lots of money, how about a change of career? I wish to study the Fa more, save more sentient beings.” My wife agreed, so we have been looking to change jobs. Many years have passed, and our efforts are in vain. My wife told me, “You have to look inside. Are there factors in this job that are arranged for you to cultivate? Nothing is accidental. If you cultivated well in your job, things will change for sure.”
Master taught us,
“A cultivator has no role models. The path each person is to take is different, because each person’s foundation is different, the sizes of their various attachments are different, the characteristics of their beings are different, their jobs among everyday people are different, their family environments are different, and so on. These factors determine that each person’s path of cultivation is different, that how they get rid of their attachments is different, and that the sizes of their tests are different. Therefore, amidst the manifestations of things it’s very hard to find a path that others have made, and it’s even less possible for a person to get a ride down one. If there really were pre-made paths and effortless rides, that definitely would not be cultivation. (“Path,” (Essentials for Further Advancements II )
I often envy some practitioners that can use all their time on the three things. But I realized that I make contact with people in my convenience store all day long, as opposed to when I was in school or when I was working in a general office. I must have a special path to walk.
For example, someone came in and took one cigarette out from an unsold pack. He took several puffs in front other customers and said it didn't taste right! He didn't want to pay for it. I took the pack back, trying hard to hold back my anger. I didn't talk to him, nor did I ask him to pay for the pack he opened. He saw me in silence and left with the burning cigarette still in between his lips. I calmed down and looked inside, I found I had an attachment of not allowing others to doubt me. We cultivate Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance. I strictly monitor the quality control and always import good quality and reputable brands. He may not have said that to intentionally annoy me. Since people encounter so many fake brands, they may truly feel the genuine goods taste funny after being used to the fake ones. At that time, I could only reach the level of cultivators who do not fight with ordinary people. My xinxing was not high enough to save such people who bullied me.
Another kind of person that annoyed me was one who used big bills to buy small things. A fire would instantly ignite within me. A typical scenario is someone having entered my store, drank one bottle of water, then paid for the one yuan bottle with a 100 yuan bill. I would tell him, “It is free for you, please take your money back.” He would then tell me he came to exchange for smaller bill, since nowadays banks and other stores refuse to exchange small bills for people. I forced myself not to explode and found 99 yuan for him. Another customer also wanted to buy 1.5 yuan worth of stuff with a 100 yuan bill. I could not control my anger and had some bad thoughts after that customer left, even though I exchanged the bills. Now my xinxing is higher and I am embarrassed upon recalling this. No matter how troublesome for me it is to change large bills, I have no excuse not to look inside to cultivate my xinxing.
My mother, also a disciple, said I lack compassion. People can all meet with inconvenience when short of small bills. You should thank them that Master has arranged for them to help you expand your volume of compassion. Not only should you genuinely be tolerant, but you also need to save him by clarifying the truth to him!
My wife also thinks Master arranged this job to help me get rid off my attachment of being mad at people. I think she is right. Upon improving, I can endure such conflicts, it seems such incidents decreased. When I faced those situations, I found they still occur frequently, but I can smile at those customers now. Customers all comment that my store sells all genuine goods, has nice service, and has competitive prices. My customers naturally increased. Our business, customers and myself have all benefitted from Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance. The key point here is we laid a solid foundation for later truth clarification, and for persuading people to quite the CCP.
Since I hardly have time to go out face to face to save people, I began clarifying the truth in my store, which I originally did not dare to. Master taught;
"Cultivation is cultivation, and cultivation is about getting rid of one's attachments, putting a stop to bad human behavior and all kinds of fears, including the human attachments of being afraid of this and being afraid of that.”
“Fear can cause one to make mistakes, and fear can cause one to lose a predestined opportunity. Fear is a death trap on a human being's journey toward divinity.”（”Pass the Deadly Test"）
“All sentient beings are waiting to be saved, and I can tell you something certain. If Dafa disciples don’t act to save them, those people, no matter in what corner of the world they may be, will have no hope unless you go to save them.”（”Fa Teaching Given at the NTDTV Meeting"）
“That’s even more the case for Dafa disciples, for they shoulder the mission of saving sentient beings, and their expanse is even greater. The Dafa disciples of the world together encompass the whole earth, with each person having a certain reach. All of what you encounter and meet with owes to factors that are present within your expanse. If you can have sufficient righteous thoughts, you can then be towering and massive within your expanse and suppress any bad things that might exist there. Were every Dafa disciple able to achieve this, the entire world would change, since each of you assumes responsibility for a large expanse in this world and represents a certain segment of sentient beings.” (“Fa Teaching Given at the Epoch Times Meeting”)
I don't see with my third eye, but I can tell how important our responsibility is; we made vows. Master bestowed us with the mission of saving sentient beings, but my human notions of leisure and fear blocked me from fulfilling the mission. I let Master down, let my sentient beings down. Other disciples are seeking sentient beings everywhere to save, my sentient beings come to my door to be saved. It would be regretful if one day when the truth is revealed, my customers would ask me, how come you never saved us when we were so close to you? I began to pass out booklets and persuaded people to quit the CCP.
One night this summer, I was about to close the shop when a young man came to buy batteries. I sent forth righteous thoughts and said with a kind voice, “You look like one of my schoolmates. Handsome and confident!” He said, really? I told him my schoolmate's name is Jianhong, and asked his name. He told me. I persuaded him to make the three withdrawals, he also accepted my truth clarification. I told him to remember Falun Dafa is good. He promised and thanked me. In a short three minutes, another being was saved.
When I studied the Fa well, had sufficient righteous thoughts, I can help to save 4- 9 people per day. But when I did not study the Fa well, had fear, I only helped about 2-3 people, or even zero. I helped some customers and nearby residents to quit the CCP. I helped about twenty merchandise suppliers and delivery workers. I found those retail people are busy with their business and haven't yet heard about the true situation. It still proves difficult to cover all areas with our materials, some people may not read the materials we passed to them, nor would some people be willing to make the three withdrawals.
I started to pass out Shen Yun DVDs in my store to most of our old customers. Two thirds of them told me how they liked them. I asked them to pass the DVDs on to their friends and families. After I passed more than 60 out, I developed fear, because I read a report that some disciples were reported and sentenced to prison when passing out Shen Yun DVDs. I stopped handing out the DVDs for several days, but soon realized that we must save people face to face. Of course, with truth clarification materials it was much easier to help them quit the CCP. Those who never read our materials wouldn't as easily make the three withdrawals.
When I calmly studied the Fa, I found I still didn't contain enough Fa. That resulted from human attachments blocking my saving of sentient beings. I soon resumed saving people in my store and my success rate increased after studying the Fa more gained more experience. Whenever I come across difficulties, I often recall Master's words:
“I know that you’ve all worked so hard. You have to work and you have to study, you have your family life and social activities, and at the same time you have to take care of your family, do a good job at work, and you have to study the Fa well and do the exercises well, and what’s more, you have to clarify the truth. It is hard! It’s pretty hard both time-wise and financially. It’s hard, so your mighty virtue is displayed; it’s hard, and so it’s a good opportunity to establish your mighty virtue. Remarkable! Since you are cultivators, even though it’s hard you should do even better.” (“Teaching the Fa at the 2001 Canada Fa Conference,” Guiding the Voyage）
I no long think I entered the wrong career, nor do I think the job doesn't suit me. I can continue to run my store by following the course of nature. No matter what I do, I must help people quit the CCP and clarify the truth. I know I am far from doing enough, but I am trying hard to catch up!
Heshi!
