Teenage Falun Dafa Practitioners in Europe Thank Master Li

(Minghui.org) With the arrival of the 2025 Chinese New Year, three teenage Falun Dafa practitioners talked about their cultivation experiences and thanked Master Li for his benevolent guidance.

Bindi from Germany is a young drummer and drum major in the European Tian Guo Marching Band. When she marches in front of the band, she looks calm, confident, and poised. It’s hard to believe that she’s only a 17-year-old high school student. The band often participates in events in different European cities, and, during their breaks, Bindi shops and eats pizza with the other teenage practitioners.

Bindi thanks Master.

Bindi joined the Tian Guo Marching Band when she was 12 and played the snare drum. She was only 15 the first time she led the band in a parade. After the two-hour-long parade not only did she ache all over, but the other band members pointed out that her conducting was not clear and some of her beats were wrong. She felt she was being treated unfairly and and that their comments were not justified. She was upset, and it showed.

After she calmed down, Bindi reminded herself that she was a practitioner, so whenever something upset her, she needed to look at the problem based on the Fa’s principles. She thought, “When I feel uncomfortable and that I’m not being treated fairly, isn’t it a test to see if I can accept criticism and if I can improve?”

She thought about her shortcomings and focused on how to improve her techniques. After letting go of her objections, she was once again relaxed and positive. Afterwards, the other band members said she improved.

Many young people Bindi’s age drink and smoke, and some even smoke marijuana. She began practicing Falun Dafa with her parents when she was four years old and said those things never attracted her. She said, “I don’t need things that are harmful to my mind and body.”

Because she does not drink or smoke, some of her classmates thought she was boring and not cool, but Bindi held fast to her principles. She said, “Every time I am able to persist, I always have a special feeling. I understand that it is correct to avoid these things.”

Bindi recalled a school field trip in which some of her classmates played a trick on her and secretly added alcohol to her drink. Unaware of it, she drank a mouthful. This was the first and only time she drank alcohol. Afterwards, she told her classmates that she chose not to drink due to her principles and that they should respect her choice. The ones who’d spiked her drink apologized to her. After that, her classmates no longer cared if she drank or not. Instead, they respected her principles.

Regarding her confidence, which is beyond her age, Bindi said, “Falun Dafa taught me to abide by the principles of Truthfulness, Compassion, and Forbearance to do things correctly. That way, there are no problems that cannot be resolved.”

At the beginning of the new year, Bindi thanked Master from the bottom of her heart: “No words can express my joy and gratitude. Master guides us on our path of cultivation. Master suffered a lot for us. My life is so comfortable and relaxed. I must overcome the difficulties and attachments on my path of cultivation. I thank Master profoundly for his benevolence and guidance.”

A Problem Youth Changes

Borna is studying medicine in college. He is tall, smiles often, and likes to talk to people. Looking at him now, it’s hard to imagine that he was once a problem youth. As an only child, Borna was given lots of love and attention. Influenced by modern society, however, he become defiant when he entered puberty. He saw his parents’ care and concern as a form of restraint and stopped talking to them. Then he started drinking, smoking, partying, and taking drugs.

Just before Borna took the college entrance exams, a good friend gave him a copy of Zhuan Falun. As he was reading it, he felt a calm and warmth that he had never felt before. His back, which he had injured in the past, no longer hurt after he practiced the exercises. He eliminated all his bad habits and had a totally new understanding of life and family. He said, “After I started practicing Falun Dafa, I had compassion for other people and tried my best to be tolerant. My once bad temper gradually changed, and I became calmer and had more self-restraint. ”

Borna thanks Master.

Before he began practicing Falun Dafa, Borna did not appreciate all his mother did to throw him a big birthday party when he turned 18, and he made his grandmother very angry. After he began cultivating, he held a party for his 19th birthday and invited 25 of his relatives. He helped his mother decorate the room and prepare the food and drinks. On the day of the party, he stood at the door and welcomed everyone with a smile. He talked and laughed with the guests. When everyone left, he gave each one a hug and thanked them for coming.

Borna is grateful for his positive changes and said, “I benefited so much. This is all thanks to Master Li Hongzhi’s teachings. It is Master who helped me become a better person who places others first. I want to thank Master with the utmost respect from the bottom of my heart. I wish Master a happy New Year! Thank you, Master! Happy New Year!”

Growing Up Immersed in Dafa

Xiying, who lives in the Netherlands, began studying accounting in college last year. She started practicing Falun Dafa with her parents when she was little. The persecution began in China in 1999 when she was nine years old, so she and her parents moved to the Netherlands. “Since I was little, my father and mother have educated me based on the standards of Dafa.”

Xiying said, “People need to return to their original true self. Practitioners came to this mundane world so they can cultivate and follow Master to save sentient beings. I never questioned that. I also feel that I must do even better.”

Xiying, who grew up immersed in Dafa, thanked Master.

Xiying learned how to play the Chinese flute when she was 12 and joined the Tian Guo Marching Band when she was 14. Due to their limited finances, Xiying’s parents cannot go to participate in events with her, so she travels with the other band members. The events are held in different countries in Europe, so Xiying, who can speak three languages, became a veteran in going on tours. Be it finding the way on the mobile phone, finding a restaurant, or buying things, she helps everyone. There’s always a sweet smile on her face, and she became the band’s translator.

Xiying said, “If I had not cultivated Dafa, my values might be the same as regular people’s.” Xiying loves to draw, but she discovered that art classes focus on modern perspectives. When she was at a modern painting exhibition, the teacher asked everyone to feel the painters’ state of mind and objective while they were creating their paintings. When she saw that the drawings were just messy lines and smudges of color, she asked the teacher about them. The teacher explained that this was a display of the sadness and pain that the painter was feeling at that time. Xiying thought what her teacher said made sense, but she felt the painting looked dark, and she couldn’t understand why graffiti, weird human faces, scrap metal, and so on would be exhibited in the grand halls of renowned art centers.

Xiying said, “After studying the Fa and remembering what Master said, I understood that, as human beings, we should draw on our divine sides instead of allowing ourselves to indulge in our incorrect states.”

Regarding the many problems people today face, Xiying said, “If everyone could abide by the principles of Truthfulness, Compassion, and Forbearance, moral standards would improve, and all the weird, messy things happening today might not exist.” With the arrival of the new year, Xiying put her hands together [in a gesture of respect] and said, “I wish Master a happy New Year! Thank you, Master, for all you’ve done for me!”