(Minghui.org) My family used to run a small printing business, but business declined, so we decided to close it. We sold the equipment to pay off our debt of about 80,000 yuan.
Since we were owed 70,000 yuan, my younger brother volunteered to collect it. We never saw a penny of it, but my brother bought a house and a car.
When we started the business, we borrowed 25,000 yuan from my oldest sister. We returned it to her with an additional 5,000 yuan, but she wanted more. My husband gave her an additional 10,000 yuan and she chastised him.
I waited until he calmed down and told him that I was sorry about my family's behavior. I told him to forget about it, and look at it as money lost in doing business.
My elderly parents were in poor health, especially as my father had been paralyzed for about 17 years. We could not find any decent help, so I moved into my parents' home to take care of them. My two older brothers wanted me to get my parents retirement money from my younger brother and use it to take care of them. They also asked to collect the 70,000 yuan. I told them that I was not there to collect money, but to take care of our parents.
Master said:
“... as a practitioner should follow the course of nature. If something is yours, you will not lose it. If something is not yours, you will not have it even if you fight for it.” (Zhuan Falun)
There were many tribulations because I was so busy that I could not study the Fa diligently. My older brother passed away and my mother suffered dementia and needed to be watched around the clock. In fact, I had little time to eat or sleep, and developed symptoms of facial paralysis.
My mother-in-law came to see me, and saw me massaging my face. She told me that other people's daughter-in-laws showered their parents-in-law with gifts, but she was not fated to be treated like that.
She worried that I could not take care of her if she was in need. I told her that if the need arose, she could live with me, and she was appeased.
My face recovered very slowly. It was so painful that I spent many sleepless nights sitting on the couch. My husband noticed this, and his heart ached for me. He thought that my brothers and sisters could help. He thought it best that I return home.
My oldest brother agreed to share the burden of taking care of my parents, but my youngest brother, who had our parents' retirement card, said he and his wife would take care of them. All went well for a few days, but then he and his wife could no longer handle the situation. He called me and admitted that they had to rely on me. He said, “You are the stabilizing force in the family. We are lucky to have you as a sister!”
I have taken care of my parents for eight years. My facial paralysis healed once I studied the Fa better and did the exercises diligently.
My parents needed around-the-clock care. My husband thought this went on for too long, and he got impatient. He even threatened divorce. I was neither moved nor angry. Instead, I felt compassion for him. So I took better care of him and invited his mother for the winter. She was happy and my husband appreciated it.
I thought that it was just as Master said,
“The Buddha-light illuminates everywhere and rectifies all abnormalities.” (Zhuan Falun)
As long as we study the Fa well and truly cultivate, there is no obstacle we cannot overcome.
Looking back over the past few years, my life may have looked stressful to an average person, but as cultivators, we “let joy be found in hardship” (“Tempering the Will” from Hong Yin). We suffer a little, but we gain what ordinary people cannot.
Everything is going well these days for my immediate family. Our son and daughter-in-law have good jobs, and they know the truth about Falun Dafa. Sometimes they help make Dafa materials, and all of us, including our grandson, distribute them. When I run out of paper, my daughter-in-law buys some for me. She wants to contribute to Dafa.
I treat my extended family well, and never hold a grudge. My nieces and nephews' wives all say that I treat them like their own mothers, and that I am kind to everyone. My youngest brother said, “From what you have done, I really see how Falun Dafa is good.”
My mother-in-law is very picky, but she never criticizes me. When I visit her, her neighbors say, “How can you be so kind? We can find no daughter-in-law as good as you!”
I tell everyone, “My master taught me to be good. If you want your children to be dutiful, let them learn Falun Dafa!”