(Minghui.org) Greetings, benevolent Master! Greetings, fellow practitioners!
I am 66 years old and live in Sacramento. I began practicing Falun Dafa three years ago. I have so much to say, but I don’t know how to express it, since I only finished the third grade. But Dafa has greatly changed my mind and body, and I am so grateful to Master. With other practitioners’ encouragement, I wrote down my cultivation experiences.
I was born in a village in Guangxi, China, in 1957. My father was a well-educated and kind-hearted person. Although my mother had no education, she was very kind and helped others. I had three older brothers, and the oldest is a teacher. Our parents taught us children to be very respectful and polite.
After the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) usurped power, China was ruined. Life was very tough. There was never enough food, even though we had to get up at 3 or 5 o’clock every morning to work. Because we had a little land, our family was classified as landlords and we were brutally persecuted. My father, second brother, and third brother were all killed by the CCP. The CCP killed innocent people indiscriminately during the Cultural Revolution.
We lived in fear for our lives every day. The CCP said every village must find and kill criminals. My third brother was only in his early 20s, but they slandered him as a so-called “anti-Party element.” He was tied up and beaten terribly. They wanted to shoot him, but they failed three times. The older people said that when people were shot in the past, if they fired three times but the person did not die, the person’s life would be spared. But the CCP believes in atheism and doesn’t care about these things. It’s very cruel.
After my third brother was beaten to death, my mother had to wait until dark before she dared to go and see him, and she couldn’t bring his body home. She said his body was still warm and bleeding. Her heart was broken.
Fearing the CCP thugs would continue arresting us, our family risked our lives and fled to north Vietnam. Because we were unfamiliar with the area, the Vietnamese police caught us and sent us back to China. The night we were arrested and taken back to our hometown, the CCP killed my father and my second brother, throwing their bodies from the top of the mountain into the river. They said my father and brother had committed suicide for fear they would be punished for their crimes. They also said that the landlord and the landlord’s son died, and it was the landlord’s wife’s turn next. Fearing for my elder brother and me, my mother had to take another chance, and we fled to Vietnam. Every day was terrifying and hopeless, as if we were brushing shoulders with death every minute.
Now these tragedies are happening to Falun Dafa practitioners. The CCP’s live organ harvesting is even more brutal. The CCP is evil! From what I experienced as a child to the CCP persecution of Dafa disciples today, it’s clear that the evil nature of the CCP has not changed.
After my mother, my remaining older brother, and I fled to North Vietnam, we constantly feared we would be caught and sent back to China. I lived in Vietnam for over 40 years, from North to South, until I finally immigrated to the United States. I faced many hardships, and my family life was not happy. I endured numerous trials, leaving me with various health issues. I’ve been hospitalized several times due to kidney stones, arthritis, heart disease, and stomach problems. I had to take a “heart-saving pill” every other day to prevent heart attacks.
Even more frightening was losing my memory: I forgot what I just said. As time passed, my health deteriorated, and my physical abilities declined rapidly. Even lifting a glass of water was difficult. I stopped smiling years ago. I prayed to gods and Buddha, practiced all kinds of qigong, and explored different teachings. It’s as if there was a force guiding me, urging me to keep searching.
One of my children in Vietnam heard about Falun Dafa. Even though he didn’t have much time to practice, he recognized the goodness of the practice and began learning it online. Step by step, he taught me as well. Six months after I began practicing, I could no longer eat meat. It took 11 months to eat it again, but it didn’t taste good. A year after the pandemic, I was fortunate to find a local practice site and I contacted practitioners. I later acquired the book Zhuan Falun.
Through reading the teachings, I realized that Falun Dafa is a profound practice that involves character cultivation and physical exercises. Truthfulness, Compassion, and Forbearance are the guides to elevate one’s character and cultivate diligently. The practice requires changing old thought patterns and views, using righteous thoughts to address issues, and letting go of attachments.
Master purified my body. Once, while taking a bath and washing my hair, I suddenly noticed blood flowing from my lower body. I thought I was repaying karmic debts and ignored it. By the time I finished washing my hair, the bleeding stopped. Although I still occasionally bleed, I pay no attention to it.
I can now go for two hours without using the restroom. I feel like I have the energy I had 30 years ago. I can carry around 30 bottles of water that weigh about 33 pounds up the stairs. Carrying a 25-pound bag of rice upstairs is no big deal. When I get tired, the Falun starts rotating, and I quickly recover my energy. Every day I practice, the Falun rotates in different positions, and I know Master is helping me and adjusting my body.
I frequently have a smile on my face now and I even laugh. I no longer need to take heart-saving pills. I don’t experience the memory lapses I used to have. I read the teachings until almost midnight every night, but I feel rested and energetic.
Dafa not only improved my health, but also gave me wisdom. When I first met local practitioners, communication was nearly impossible. I couldn’t speak Mandarin Chinese or English. Simple matters often required finding someone who spoke Cantonese or Vietnamese to act as an interpreter. However, now I can communicate in Mandarin and I understand messages in group chats. I can even assist new Vietnamese practitioners by translating for them.
When I first read Zhuan Falun, there were many characters I couldn’t recognize, so I couldn’t read with the others. I’ve now improved significantly, and I believe it won’t be long before I can keep up with everyone’s reading pace.
Besides Zhuan Falun, I understand almost all of Master’s lectures. Achieving this level in just over a year is because Master saw my determination and bestowed these abilities on me. I am also very grateful for the selfless help given to me by local practitioners. Some accompany me to study the Fa online every day and patiently teach me Chinese; some help me order books and teach me skills I don’t hace.
My cell phone used to be just for making calls, but now it has become a magic tool for me to do the three things. Fellow practitioners helped me install Internet software so that I could participate in large online group studies and exchanges. I learned to use some functions on my cell phone, such as using map navigation to find my way while driving.
I didn’t learn to drive until I was nearly 60. I only dared to drive short distances during the day, and I never dared to take the highway or drive at night. But to be able to participate in group exercises and study the Fa, I forced myself to drive there. In the beginning, my parking skills were not good, so I parked away. Then the police fined me because I couldn’t read the signs. Now, I can not only drive to participate in many activities but I can also pick up and drop off practitioners.
During the Shen Yun promotion, I drove an hour away to distribute materials myself. Last year, I distributed about 8,000 door-to-door pamphlets. I also helped to pick up and deliver the Epoch Times newspapers in Vietnamese. I feel that Master knows everything. As long as we want to save people, Master arranges everything perfectly.
I’ve encountered all kinds of interference when I distribute materials. Once, it was hot, but I forgot to bring water. I couldn’t stop to buy it because of time constraints. But after distributing the materials, although I sweat a lot, I didn’t feel thirsty.
One day my knees hurt and I couldn’t walk. I told my knees. I thought, “You can’t interfere with me!” After I finished distributing materials, I realized my knees no longer hurt. I got lost when I drove to a practitioner’s house. I went around three times and couldn’t find it. I suddenly thought of asking Master for help, only to find that I was parked in from of her home. I used to feel nervous when I saw the police while driving, but now I’m calm.
I read and listen to the Fa whenever I have time, and I am entirely dissolved in the Fa.
My life is very simple now. Because the elderly person I care for is in the hospital, I have had more time to do the three things these past six months. Although I’ve had no income these six months, it doesn’t bother me. For six months, I ate the same dish every day just to be full. I don’t care if my children treat me well or not.
Once in a large group sharing, I heard fellow practitioners say that elderly practitioners should pay attention to their exercise movements. I bought a large mirror to check my exercise movements and corrected several of them.
After I started practicing, my sons and daughters said, “Mom, you are a different person!” I finally found Falun Dafa in my 60s and should cherish it. I often have Dafa materials with me to share the Fa with others. An 82-year-old neighbor began practicing. She says she feels better every day. She used to nap after lunch, but now she is very energetic. She also reads the Fa.
My three children now practice. My daughter-in-law who lives in Vietnam also began practicing, and now her mother also practices. A co-worker of one of my daughters-in-law also obtained the Fa, recovered from illness, and quit drinking. This co-worker spread the Fa to other people. As Master taught us:
“Those who really have a predestined relationship and can enlighten will come one after another, entering the Dao and obtaining the Fa.” (“Enlightenment,” Essentials for Further Advancement)
The more I read the Fa, the more Fa I understand. The more I read the Fa, the more I feel Master’s great mercy. How much suffering Master has endured for us! I wept the day I realized this. Looking back at the first half of my life and looking at my life now, I’m so very grateful! My suffering is nothing! I must be diligent to be worthy of our Master’s salvation!
I have little education and my understanding is very shallow. Fellow practitioners, please kindly correct me.
Thank you, Master! Thank you fellow practitioners!
(Presented at the 2023 San Francisco Falun Dafa Experience Sharing Conference)