The Fall That Changed a Family’s Destiny

(Minghui.org) If not for injuries from a fall, Guo Pingyun might still be struggling with addictions to alcohol and gambling in the stock market. A doctor recommended that she practice Falun Dafa. Not only did the practice heal the bone damage that medical treatments could not address, it also rewrote the fate of her and her entire family.

Ms. Guo is 62. When she was 38, she accidentally fell after slipping on a plastic bag while grocery shopping. Initially, she thought it was just a minor injury, but the pain became intense after returning home.

She recalled: “My husband took me to a chiropractor, a Chinese doctor for acupuncture, and a massage therapist. We tried many treatments, but the pain persisted.”

After many doctor and hospital visits, she was referred to orthopedic surgeon Dr. Ao Man-kuan, who operated on her leg, but the results were not as anticipated. He recommended swimming as rehabilitation, which she pursued for a year, yet the follow-up showed further bone deterioration.

Her heart sank when she heard the result after working hard for an entire year. Dr. Ao said, “Go and practice Falun Dafa.” He gave her some information about the spiritual practice, and she found an exercise site near her home.

A Blessing in Disguise

A seemingly unfortunate fall led her to connect with Dafa after she tried medical treatments that proved unhelpful.

“While doing the first exercise, I felt an electric current running through my body. During the second exercise, I broke out in a cold sweat, and eventually vomited. Afterward, I felt great, and my whole body felt refreshed.”

Although she experienced marvelous changes right from the start, she confessed, “I didn’t know much about cultivation back then, and I thought exercising was really difficult. Then, I became increasingly lazy, and I stopped doing the exercises. Naturally, my condition didn’t improve. By the end of each day, I struggled to cook, hold pots and pans, wash things, and eventually, I couldn’t even walk; my feet hurt a lot.”

In the midst of worrying about her foot pain, her husband unexpectedly died, leaving her to care for their young child alone. Her foot pain increased at this time, making even basic movement difficult for her.

“At that time, I really panicked; my child was still so young, my foot was so sore, and the operation hadn’t helped, leaving me unsure of what to do next.” These hardships left her in a desperate state of physical and mental exhaustion. At such a low point, she recalled Dafa: “I knew in my heart that only Falun Dafa could really save me.”

This time, she no longer had a try-it-out mentality but instead calmed down, studied the Fa, did the exercises, gritted her teeth, and persevered. Her condition began to improve, and her feet gradually returned to normal and no longer hurt. Ms. Guo said happily, “I am really healed! I participate in parades, play the waist drum, and hike in the mountains for six or seven hours. My feet don’t hurt at all.”

From Addict to Abstainer

Her physical recovery allowed her to reevaluate her life. She realized that she needed to change her deep-rooted, hard-to-quit obsessions—alcohol and stock trading.

“Out of everyone in my family, I loved drinking the most. How much did I love drinking? If there was no wine, I could not even eat my meal. I had to buy wine first; only after taking a sip could I eat.”

Fine wine was an indispensable source of comfort and joy in her life. However, she never imagined that the taste that once captivated her would become unbearable after she started cultivating.

“During the New Year, everyone was enjoying a meal together. I poured myself a small glass of liquor, but the first sip tasted awful, and the second sip was even worse. At that moment, I remembered Master saying that practitioners shouldn't drink alcohol. I realized I couldn't drink anymore, so I poured it out immediately and haven't touched a drop since.”

Disaster Avoided by Giving up Obsession

Some say that alcohol and gambling are the quickest ways to ruin a person. Alcohol can impair judgment, while gambling is detrimental to one’s life. In addition to alcohol, Ms. Guo was previously deeply immersed in trading stocks.

“I used to be really into stocks. I bought and sold every day, making a profit daily. The market rose from a few thousand points to 10,000 points. To make more money, I threw all my money into it, and I became so obsessed that I couldn’t even do my work properly. All I did was monitor the market every day.”

Now that she was a cultivator, she knew she needed to let go of her attachment to the stock market, so she put her original stock away and stopped trading it. She understood she should listen to Master Li and do the right thing.

Although she had let go of her obsession with stock trading, her family members still occasionally suggested “risk-free” investment opportunities to her.

“One time, my family mentioned that there was a person who was very accurate in his predictions and always made money. They asked me to invest several million dollars with them, but I told them that I practice Falun Dafa and couldn’t do that.”

Ms. Guo firmly refused. However, her relatives invested heavily, resulting in the loss of their entire investment. “My father even invested his life savings into the venture and lost it all. We were devastated. The whole family was shrouded in sorrow.”

A stock market crash shook the entire family, but Ms. Guo escaped the disaster because of her firm belief in Falun Dafa. Her daughter expressed gratitude, saying, “My mother used to love drinking and stock trading. If she hadn’t started practicing Falun Dafa, she might have remained addicted to those things, which would have plunged our family into a life of debt and suffering. It was Falun Dafa that changed my mother and saved our family.”

Cultivation enabled Ms. Guo to rise from the depths of despair and bring hope and direction to her family amidst the fog. Many relatives couldn’t help but wonder: What kind of power could enable a person to undergo such a complete transformation in the face of adversity?

Guo Pingyun and her daughter Yijun. Her daughter thanked Falun Dafa for changing her mother and saving their family.

Under Ms. Guo’s influence and guidance, the entire family gradually began to practice Falun Dafa, and her young daughter Zishan was among them.

Finding Direction in Life

In her junior year, Zishan and her classmates started contemplating their futures. She wondered, “What will my life be like? What attitude should I take as I move forward?” She knew that once she left school, she would face all kinds of temptations and challenges.

She told herself, “I must uphold morality and act according to Dafa’s requirements. I must not lose my way by following social trends.”

As a child, she followed the adults to study the Fa and do the exercises, but she did not understand what cultivation meant to her life. During this reflection, she realized that the seeds of Truthfulness, Compassion, and Forbearance were already rooted in her heart.

It was then that she began to take her practice seriously. During one exercise session, she felt powerful energy flowing through her body from head to toe. “It was like a large pillar passing through my entire body, and in that instant, my body felt clean and clear.”

Soon after, Zishan’s physical and mental health began to noticeably improve. She had struggled with acne since childhood. To combat the acne, her family took her to both traditional Chinese medicine practitioners and Western doctors; she even tried folk remedies, but nothing worked. “In college, I spent tens of thousands of dollars on expensive skincare products, but as soon as I stopped using them, my skin reverted to its original state. I was very self-conscious during that time and was convinced that everyone was looking at my face.”

To her surprise, as she steadily learned the Fa and did the exercises, the acne that had plagued her for many years gradually went away. Her skin became clear, and her complexion more rosy. She no longer had to rely on skincare products.

Simple and Carefree Cultivation Life

Zishan (second from right), Ping Yun (left), and other family members study the Fa together every week.

In the past, Zishan, like many young people, often became emotionally attached and nitpicked over every little thing in life. However, after following the Falun Dafa principles in her life, she realized that those who argue and fuss about trivial matters cause invisible harm to themselves and others.

“Master taught us that everything we do should be done for the good of others, not for selfish reasons. Now, when I encounter problems, I can handle them more rationally and am no longer prone to getting stuck on minor issues.”

As her thoughts refined, her heart became simple and straightforward, and a sense of stability and confidence naturally emerged.

“In the past, when someone gave me something, I would always think about how to repay them, wanting others to think I was a good person through outward appearances. But now, I no longer deliberately show off. Instead, I naturally maintain good thoughts and treat everyone with sincerity.”

“My life has become much simpler. I worry less and feel less attached than I did before, about both material things or personal relationships. Dafa has become the core value in my heart.”

The path of life is filled with ups and downs. Falun Dafa enabled Ms. Guo and her family to remain steadfast amid the storms and find their way back to physical health and character improvement.