(Minghui.org) My father-in-law married at the age of 17 and became a father at 20. My in-laws are not old, and there are four generations in my family who live under one roof. Thanks to my father-in-law’s tolerance, we manage to live together. But it was not always like this.
I don’t quite know what happened between my mother-in-law and grandma (my father-in-law’s mother), but from what I had seen, everything my mother-in-law did to grandma was not good. My father-in-law was a contractor and earned good money. My mother-in-law bought any food that her husband wanted to eat. When grandma was here, she didn’t cook regularly and gave grandma leftovers most of the time. The way they treated her was in total contrast with what my mother taught me about respecting elders. I didn’t like my mother-in-law and looked down on her.
My husband and I started practicing Falun Dafa and learned that there were karmic relationships between people. My mother-in-law and father-in-law had a heated argument about supporting grandma. My mother-in-law was very angry. She brought up things from the past and complained about grandma’s various faults. She demanded her husband send his parents back to their hometown. My father-in-law tried to reason with her, but couldn’t. He said, “Even if I have to move out to rent an apartment, I will not leave my parents behind.”
Their two sons and two daughters-in-law were in front of them. My mother-in-law turned to us, and said, “You see? Your father doesn’t want us. He has only 3 people in his mind.” We looked at each other and didn’t know what to do.
I followed my mother-in-law when she left the room. I said to her softly, “Please don’t be angry any more. Whatever grandparents did, my father-in-law has his own concerns. You see your two sons are just in front of you. Doesn’t he want to set a good example for them? If you continue arguing with him, how do you think they will treat you in the future?” She thought about it, calmed down and went about her business as if nothing happened.
In another conflict, my mother-in-law said that her husband was biased and favored grandma. She was very angry and asked me to be the judge. I asked her, “Mom, if we have a conflict, do you want your sons to favor me or you? Aren’t your sons in the middle? When you went out, grandma comforted grandpa, saying that you had a bad temper, but you are a good person. She asked grandpa not to get angry.” My mother-in-law listened and calmed down.
My mother-in-law regarded me as her bosom friend. She liked to come to me when she had conflicts with her husband. My father-in-law even started practicing Falun Dafa later on.
It was near the Chinese New Year, and my in-laws had an argument again regarding grandma. My mother-in-law was so angry that she moved out that night and said she would never return. This time I told my father-in-law: “Master said: ‘Under all circumstances, we must be good and kind to others, not to mention to our family members.’” (Lecture Six, Zhuan Falun) My father-in-law calmed down, phoned his wife and comforted her, saying: “Don’t be angry any more. Please come home.”
She was very happy to hear him apologize, as it was the first time since they had been married for over 20 years. She felt that she gained respect from her husband for the first time. The respect was bestowed upon her by Dafa, not from her numerous arguments and fights with her husband. Thanks to Falun Dafa, her husband became good and kind. Because of this experience, she supports Dafa despite the bloody persecution of Falun Dafa perpetrated by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) these 20-plus years.
My brother-in-law and his wife, and my husband and I were once classmates in high school. My sister-in-law and I attended universities in the same city. We became so close that we called each other “sister”.
My sister-in-law excelled academically and was accepted by the university without sitting the entrance exam. Her husband, however, graduated from a university with a lower academic standing. My mother-in-law treated my sister-in-law very well, and often bought various things for her. My sister-in-law was very happy.
I always require myself to live by Dafa’s principles. Though my in-laws were sound financially, I always told my mother-in-law not to buy anything for me. I don’t have any conflicts with them, and we live together harmoniously.
This family harmony was broken up by the CCP’s persecution of Falun Dafa in July 1999. My sister-in-law was a political teacher at a university. Because of the CCP’s lies and propaganda, she strongly opposed us practicing Falun Dafa.
She was furious when she saw us reading Falun Dafa books. When my husband was sent to a brainwashing center, she scolded our father-in-law, accusing him of not educating his son well. At that time we didn’t know about clarifying the truth and quietly stuck to our belief.
When she had to go to another city to study again, she left her breast-feeding baby at home. We looked after the baby without complaint, and our father-in-law supported her financially. When she came back, she no longer opposed us practicing Dafa.
My husband and I were taken to a forced labor camp. She came to see us, but the authorities didn’t let her in. She cried and was so worried about us.
My father-in-law died in a car accident, and my mother-in-law and my son lived with my sister-in-law. A guard in the labor camp asked me, “How will you pay back your brother-in-law and sister-in-law for taking care of your son?” I didn’t answer, and thought that I would cultivate myself well in Dafa and Master would take care of everything.
When my husband and I were released from the labor camp, and my brother-in-law and sister-in-law thought we would have low self-esteem and live poorly because we were outcast by society. However, we integrated with society very well and had outstanding performances at work thanks to the wisdom we gained from Dafa. We didn’t ask for any help from her family. They and their relatives realized that the power of Dafa was extraordinary.
They later sold my mother-in-law’s apartment and bought another one under their names. They thought we would get angry, but we didn’t complain at all. They felt sorry for us and asked us to move in, to accompany my mother-in-law.
We paid them rent and said that we cultivate in Dafa and our Master told us that we shouldn’t take advantage of others. They only accepted rent for two months and refused to take any more. They said that in principle we should have our share of the apartment. We lived harmoniously with them.
My mother-in-law, was worried about us not having our own apartment. I comforted her, saying: “Don’t worry! When the persecution ends, our apartment will be the best one. Remember the Udumbara flowers on the front door and cabinet?” (Udumbara flowers are believed to only bloom when there is great virtue in the world). She nodded in agreement.
Falun Dafa has always brought us peace and beauty on our cultivation journey. All our hardships and injuries were caused by the CCP’s persecution. My mother-in-law deeply knows , and said, “I am not blind. Everything you do I have seen with my own eyes. I admire you from the bottom of my heart.”
Though the persecution of Dafa continues, she spoke her mind to us during this Chinese New Year, saying, “Whatever other people think, I believe in Dafa’s Master whole-heartedly.”
(Selected Submission Celebrating the 24th World Falun Dafa Day on the Minghui website)