My 88-Year-Old Mother Still Hiking

(Minghui.org) My mother is 88 years old. Her back is still straight, her hearing is still good, and she doesn't need to wear reading glasses. 

She has a full head of thick gray and black hair. When she walks, she looks like someone in their 60s. 

Three years ago in the fall, we went hiking to pick up fruit. Because of her good health, she was envied by many seniors. 

When people saw me, they always said, “Your mom is doing really well! Among thousands of people, you can’t find one person like her.” 

The key to her good health is Falun Dafa cultivation. I’d like to share her cultivation stories below. 

Learning to Read Zhuan Falun

At the end of 1994, seeing many people practicing Falun Dafa, she said to the assistant at a practice site, “I also want to learn Dafa.” She went with my father to the practice site and quickly learned the five sets of exercises. 

From that day forward, she practiced with other practitioners every day at the exercise site. At night, she went to the group Fa-study. 

She never attended school, so she was illiterate. When other people read Zhuan Falun, she just sat quietly listening and was able to totally absorb what they read. 

One day, she said to the assistant at the Fa-study group, “I also want to read the Fa like you, but I’m illiterate.” The assistant said, “As long as you have the wish to study, Master will help you.” 

Upon hearing that, she was very happy. Right away, she bought two copies of Zhuan Falun and took them home to share with my father. 

After she came home, she held the book in her hands respectfully and looked at Master’s portrait, and asked for His help. She began reading one word at a time. 

While reading, she asked my father, “Did I get this right?” When she came across words she didn’t pronounce correctly, my father would correct her. 

In the beginning, she could only learn one line at a time. Gradually she sped up; one month later, she learned five to six lines per day. 

With the elapse of time, she could learn one page a day, then she progressed to two or three pages a day. Only after she had cultivated for a few years, did I become aware that she practiced Dafa. 

Back then, I was into another practice. Later on, when I realized that what I followed wasn’t what I was looking for, I dropped it. 

Because my parents didn’t tell me they practiced Dafa, nor did they show me Zhuan Falun, I had no idea what Dafa was. 

However, I realized that every time I came home, I saw my mom with a smile on her face and a rosy complexion. Her short temper also went away. 

She was always in high spirits and appeared to be much younger than her real age. One day, she said something improper, and I said to her, “You shouldn’t say that.” She said right away, “Sure, I won’t say that anymore.” 

I praised her by saying, “Why is your attitude so good now?” She told me that since she began practicing Dafa, she had to be a good person with everything she did. 

She also said, “Practicing Dafa is truly amazing! My headaches, finger joint and stomach pain have all been healed.” I said, “Then you should stick to it; it’s great!” 

On April 25, 1999, fellow practitioners and my mother went to appeal to the government. Since July 20, 1999, out of jealousy, Jiang Zemin, the former Chinese Communist Party (CCP) leader, launched the brutal persecution. 

Because my mother had participated in the April 25 appeal, she was targeted. Police officers have come to her home to harass her multiple times, and my father’s company also put a lot of pressure on him. 

As a result, in late 1999, both my parents were forced to stop cultivation. However, in the Spring of 2004, I was fortunate enough to begin Dafa cultivation. 

While holding the book, and only after having read a few pages, I began to shout, “This is amazing! This is exactly what I am looking for⸺I finally found it!” 

My excitement was beyond description, and I quickly ran to my parents’ home. As soon as I arrived, I said excitedly, “Mom, I started reading Zhuan Falun. This book is truly amazing! This is what I’ve been looking for⸺I've finally found it!” 

Seeing my excitement, she quickly took out the book she had put away. From that day on, she returned to her cultivation path. 

Later, no matter how much difficulty she had to face or however much pressure was on her, she never stopped cultivation. 

One day, I came home to visit them, and my mother asked me how many chapters I read every day. 

I said, “I read one chapter every day.” She said, “I’ll follow you to study one chapter as well.” And that is what she did.

She told me that she got up at 3 a.m. every day. After she finished doing the five exercises, she studied the Fa teachings. If she didn’t get to finish a chapter, she’d resume her study after that; she has done this every day. 

When my family saw her change, they were all supportive of her. One year, on the second day after the Chinese New Year, we had a family party at a restaurant. 

Before that, we got together at my parent’s home. My brother knew she studied the Fa every day, and asked her, “Could you read a paragraph for me? I want to hear you read; I’m curious. 

“You never attended school and can’t read your name, so how can you learn how to read at your age?” Right away, she took out a copy of Zhuan Falun and began to read it seriously, with my brother looking over to check. 

After she finished, the rest of us all arrived. When she stopped, my brother gave her a thumbs-up, and said with a big smile, “Incredible! This elderly lady is amazing! She knows how to read now!” 

Reading Without Wearing Glasses, Bodily Changes

When my mom was in her 50s, she wore reading glasses when using her sewing machine. Later, when she studied the Fa, she also put them on. 

About 10 years ago, one day, my mom was studying the Fa with her reading glasses on. 

She read very carefully in a low voice. Suddenly, the right lens fell off. 

It rolled away quickly and disappeared. She went to look for it right away, but couldn’t find it after having searched for a long time. 

She thought to herself, “So weird, where did it go? With only one lens left, how can I still wear them!” 

She took off her glasses and continued with Fa-study. Miraculously, she ended up seeing better without glasses. 

Since then, she stopped wearing glasses. She knew it was Master who helped clean up her body, so she could read without glasses. 

She had a rosy complexion and very little wrinkles on her face. Her weight was average and she didn’t have a hunched back either. 

One day five years ago, she whispered to me, “I got my period again. It wasn't much and only lasted for a day.” 

Falling Down and Breaking a Big Stone

There were no irons in the past, so the elderly used a big stone to pound clothes. People put their clothes on a stone and pounded them with a mallet to get rid of wrinkles. 

When I was little, our stone was 1.6 feet long, 1.3 feet high, and 0.3 feet tall. It was very smooth and crafted very nicely. 

My grandma told me she brought it over from her parents’ home when she got married. One day, my mom used it to climb on top of a cabinet over 3.3 feet high against the wall. 

On top of the cabinet, she stood up to fetch something from the other end of the cabinet. Before she stood up properly, she suddenly fell off the cabinet. She fell face up and landed on that big stone. 

She said right away, “I’m fine! I’m fine!” Then got up. She swung her body and walked a few steps. It turned out that she was okay. 

When she took a look at that big stone, it was broken in half. She did Heshi, thanked Master, and said repeatedly, “Falun Dafa is wonderful! Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance is wonderful! Thank you, Master!” 

This is what she told me after I came home. She said, “Now thinking back, I feel scared. This was meant to take my life. Only because of Master’s protection, did I come out of it safe and sound!” 

My parents’ home is on the ground floor. From their room to the kitchen, there were three stairs. 

Given their ages, and out of concern for their safety, I designed a handrail for them. I had people from the handrail company make one from stainless steel based on my design. 

It looked very nice and was quite sturdy. About six years ago after I came home, my mom told me, “The handrail you put on is very useful. One day I went to the kitchen with a plate in my hand. 

“I didn’t see some water on the floor when suddenly I slipped and my feet went out from under me. At that moment, I called out loudly, ‘Master! Master!’ 

"As the plate went flying, my hand caught the handrail and stopped me from falling down on my back. It could have been very dangerous. 

Master saved me once again. "Thank you, Master!” While saying that, she did Heshi to show her gratitude for Master’s saving grace!

There are quite a few examples like this that she told me about, but I can only list a few. She has run into danger time after time. 

Each time, it was meant to take away her life. Master protected her every single time so that she didn’t face any real danger. 

Every time she did Heshi to Master to show her appreciation for the saving grace of Master and Dafa!

Every time she shared with me, I wanted to write it down but never found the time. Today after I finished doing the sitting meditation, I suddenly started thinking about her cultivation stories. 

I made up my mind to put them together to bear witness to the miraculousness and beauty of Falun Dafa⸺a true mind and body cultivation practice!