(Clearwisdom.net) I obtained the Fa in 1996. I had been looking hard for a righteous practice for a long time and finally the time had come. Under Teacher's compassionate guidance, in October 1996, I called a good friend whom I hadn't spoken to for over a year and mentioned some of my doubts about cultivation. My friend mailed me a book saying that it had all the answers. A week later I received Zhuan Falun and from then on my life began anew.
I was fortunate to witness Teacher's Fa lectures in person many times. I felt that Teacher was very easy going and had great compassionate understanding about every practitioner.
In November 1997, Teacher came to Taiwan to lecture for the first time. He had one class in Taipei and one in Taichung. As I was helping to move chairs before the Taipei class held in Sanxing Elementary School, I suddenly saw Teacher walk in and was shocked and excited. I yelled, "Teacher!" Teacher put his index finger on his lips and said, "Shush." I withheld my excitement, compressed my hands together and stood aside quietly. I saw Teacher waving at other practitioners with a smile.
During the lecture, Teacher's tone and voice were clear, peaceful, and every single word of his went right into my heart. During the recess, Teacher walked around the auditorium. All practitioners seemed to melt into Teacher's compassionate energy field, as there was no noise or pushing and everyone made way for Teacher to walk by. As I saw Teacher walk towards me, I couldn't say a word but cry. Teacher looked at me with a smile as if he understood what I was going to say. I was totally immersed in Teacher's immense compassion.
After the class was over and most people left, several of us met Teacher, who was about to leave. At that time, there weren't many practice sites in Taiwan. Hence, I eagerly wanted to start a practice site to spread the beauty of Dafa so I said, "Teacher, I want to start a practice site at a particular place, how do I do it?" Several senior practitioners beside me looked at me as if they were thinking, "You have this precious opportunity to ask Teacher questions, yet you ask such a simple thing?" Teacher didn't treat anyone differently because of the question the person asked. He patiently answered every question. Teacher patiently guided me and consoled me not to worry too much. It felt like I was in the midst of a spring breeze. I remember looking at Teacher and feeling blessed and not retaining much of what was said. Looking back, I realize after all this time that the development of the practice site has been the same as how Teacher then described.
I saw Teacher again at the conference in Frankfurt, Germany, in May 1998.
As the first half of the conference was about to end, I went out of the conference room to buy informational materials. Luckily I saw Teacher looking at a poster made by German practitioners. I was excited and took out a camera and took Teacher's picture. Teacher looked at me, and though he didn't say anything, I knew I had done something wrong. I put away the camera and stood aside. As more and more practitioners exited the conference room, Teacher headed upstairs to leave. I quickly caught up with him and said, "Teacher, I am from Taiwan." Teacher heard me and turned around and walked downstairs to shake my hand and asked me a few things cordially. Teacher said to a practitioner living in the US standing beside me, "You are a practitioner from Taiwan too." Later this US practitioner told me happily, "Teacher knew that I was from Taiwan!"
After the conference was over, Teacher promised to take pictures with practitioners from various countries. Everyone was excited. There was a practitioner from Taiwan who was blind and couldn't move conveniently. After taking a picture, everyone was focused on shaking hands with Teacher and didn't pay attention to the blind practitioner. Teacher walked toward her and shook hands with her. This practitioner later told me, "Teacher shook my hand, too! Teacher thinks about others in every detail. His heart for every practitioner is the same!"
Shortly after I obtained the Fa, I was curious to know everything about Teacher. Teacher always looked decent, though I wondered what material was Teacher's suit was made of. Out of curiosity, while Teacher was busy shaking hands with practitioners on the stage, I took the opportunity and touched the corner of Teacher's suit. I realized it was a good wool material but mixed with nylon. Teacher always wore the same two or three suits when he went overseas to lecture. I heard other practitioners say that during one of Teacher's lectures in China, he ate instant noodles every day. Every time I think of these details, I remind myself not to waste money on material things and pay attention to details in daily life, as Teacher said in "Sage", "Full of great aspirations while minding minor details".
In the 1998 conference in Singapore, during the recess, I sat on the right hand side by Teacher. A middle-aged practitioner sitting to Teacher's left raised concerns about a badly injured and painful knee problem. Teacher consoled him saying, "It's not a problem, not a problem!" all the while stroking his knee. I felt Teacher was eliminating the root cause of the practitioner's problem, though the practitioner seemed unable to let go this bodily concern by voicing additional worries. Teacher didn't get impatient, simply encouraged him with compassion, "You can do it! You can do it!"
At the Changyi Airport as we were heading back to Taiwan, a dozen of us ran into Teacher again. Everyone seized the chance to ask Teacher some questions. I asked, "I had a tribulation for a while, how come I can't get beyond it?" Teacher said, "This tribulation is big and I arranged it for you little by little (he used hand gestures to show what he meant). You shouldn't have any problem breaking through." In the end, Teacher told me, "You certainly can pass it!" I felt Teacher's strengthening power. No matter how tough the test may be, I remembered the line from Zhuan Falun, "When it's difficult to endure, you can endure it. When it's impossible to do, you can do it," I was confident that I could make it. Not long after that, I passed the test.
Every time I recollect time I have spent with Teacher, it was like we were a family. I bathed in Teacher's immense compassion and all concerns disappeared. I felt very lucky and truly blessed!
It's been 15 years since Teacher has made public this immense Fa. We have walked to where we are today under Teacher's compassionate protection. Though sometimes we stumble, Teacher always pulls us up and pushes us forward. Teacher said in Eliminate Your Last Attachment(s), "You have already made it through the most difficult time. So as for your last attachment, you must be sure to let go of it. I know all of the suffering of my disciples. The truth is, I treasure you more than you treasure yourselves!"
Dear respectable Teacher, we will definitely do the three things well, with righteous thoughts and actions, to save sentient beings and never let you down!
