Dafa Taught Me to Consider Others in Everything I Do

(Minghui.org) I was riding my bike to the morning market on April 18, 1998, when I saw a group of about 100 people doing the Falun Gong (also known as Falun Dafa) exercises. I was curious and stopped to learn the movements. The third day I practiced the assistant gave me the book Zhuan Falun and I began practicing Falun Dafa. I have been practicing for more than 27 years.

By following Master’s teachings, I gradually changed my character and way of thinking. I learned to be grateful, cultivate my moral character, and identify and let go of jealousy, competitiveness, the desire to show off, and attachments to fame and material gain. I understood the principles Master taught in the section of the book titled: “Zhen-Shan-Ren is the Sole Criterion to Discern Good and Bad People.” (Lecture One, Zhuan Falun) I read the book every day, and my state of mind continued to elevate. When speaking to my husband and children, my tone gradually softened. I used to speak harshly to them, but now I say, “I’m sorry, I was wrong. It’s my fault.”

After my father-in-law passed away, my mother-in-law, then 70, lived with my older brother-in-law and his wife. I often brought her to our home for a month or so at a time, to give my sister-in-law a break. My mother-in-law later started practicing Falun Dafa. We moved her in with us when she was 85.

My mother-in-law is a rural resident with no pension and no house. My older brother and his wife said she wasn’t entitled to a share of any property. I thought: She gave birth to five children, endured the pain of childbirth, worked hard to raise them, and contributed so much to the family. It wasn’t easy for her. In her old age, she deserved a stable place to live. Whenever she returned from another child’s home, my husband and I drove there to pick her up and make her feel cared for. On birthdays and during the Chinese New Year holidays, we let her keep the money her children and grandchildren gave her; she thus had tens of thousands of yuan, which made her feel happy and secure. She loved being able to give money envelopes to her grandchildren for the Chinese New Year holidays. Relatives, neighbors, and coworkers praised me for being a filial daughter-in-law. This is what Master taught me—to put others first.

In 2019, I was illegally sentenced to three years in prison by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) for practicing Dafa. During that time, my mother-in-law took turns staying with her children. On the eighth day after I returned home in April 2022, I brought her back to live with us. It was spring, and my sister-in-law, who had cared for her for a few months was busy with farm work. My older brother-in-law and his wife were in poor health, and my second brother-in-law’s home was damp because they lived on the first floor. At that time, my daughter lived at home for over a year. We only had two bedrooms, so I shared one with my mother-in-law, and my husband slept on the sofa. This arrangement helped ease the burden on the other siblings.

After I was released from prison, the CCP stopped paying my pension. Even before I was sentenced, they deceived me out of over 40,000 yuan. However, they promised to resume paying my pension after my prison sentence ended. But I didn’t receive any pension. My husband earned just over 3,000 yuan a month. Last year, when my mother-in-law turned 100, she received only 400 yuan a month. Her other children were well-off, but they visited her only occasionally. I have Master’s Fa to guide me on how to be a good person. Whenever I felt it was unfair that the other siblings didn’t contribute to any of my mother-in-law’s expenses, I reminded myself that Master taught us to let go of attachments to self-interest and fame. I thought I must never let my mother-in-law feel neglected. Growing old is hard enough, especially for the rural elderly in China, where there is no pension and no house. If the children are not filial their lives are even harder.

In September 2022, I rented a place where I could tutor two children and earn some money to ease the financial burden on my husband. I earned more during the holidays. Then, one night, my mother-in-law fell on her way to the bathroom and severely injured her arm. It was swollen and bruised from her shoulder to her fingers, and she could no longer care for herself. My sister-in-law helped for a few days, but she had to return to work. I told my husband about it, and he said, “No way, how can she go to work? She should be here helping me care for our mother!” Still, she went back to work. My husband said, “We can’t count on anyone else—it’s all up to you.” I gave up the tutoring job, ended the rental, and returned home to help my husband care for his mother. We fed her, bathed her, and cleaned her up when she was incontinent. We barely slept at night. After about 40 days, she was able to sit up and could do the Dafa exercises, including the meditation. Looking back, I was able to think of my husband and my mother-in-law because that’s what Master’s teachings guided me to do.

The next summer, my mother-in-law lost her eyesight. Her hearing was already poor. She couldn’t care for herself. I put aside my losses and gain, and shared the responsibility of caring for her with my husband. In early August 2024, she was able to stand and do the four standing exercises again. She meditated twice a day. She is over 100 and is a very diligent Dafa practitioner.

I have one more story to share. My neighbor on the second floor is an older woman whose husband passed away years ago. She has one son, but his wife didn’t visit her. That spring, she became ill. Seeing how pitiful her situation was, I accompanied her to the doctor and stayed overnight with her in the hospital. After returning home, she fell again and could barely make it to the bedside commode. I often brought her food. She even gave me a key to her apartment. I washed her hair, gave her baths, and did what I could to help her. I visited her almost daily and sometimes emptied her bedpan. I never accepted any food or gifts from her. Her family trusted me and often praised my character. Every time they complimented me, I would say, “My Master taught me to behave this way.” When her son had to travel for work, I visited her twice each day. Now, she listens to Master’s audio lectures, and her son’s entire family has quit the CCP and its youth organizations. They often recite, “Falun Dafa is good, Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance is good.” She and I frequently sit together to recite these words for five or ten minutes at a time. One day in mid-September last year, she was able to stand up. She has also changed. Her son said his mom is now kind.

Dafa has transformed me from a selfish, immoral person full of karma into someone who considers others in everything I do. I am free of illnesses, feel light and energetic, and remain optimistic and positive.

Master, I thank you. On behalf of my entire family, I thank you.