How a Daughter from an Abusive Family Created a Loving Home

(Minghui.org) When I was born in April 1951, my family was already struggling to make ends meet. And to make things worse, my mother soon became pregnant again with my younger sister. I never had any milk as a baby and had to survive off of gruel. My own health was so frail that I only learned to walk when I was five years old. 

There were six children in my family: my two older brothers, two younger sisters, one younger brother, and me. It was difficult for my farmer parents to earn enough to support our family of eight, and the pressure from supporting such a large family often put them on edge. Whenever they became angry, they would verbally and physically abuse us. 

All of my siblings got to go to school except me, who had to stay home to care for my younger sisters and brother. I also did the whole family’s laundry, fed our pigs, and milled our own flour. 

“You want to go to school?” my mom would say. “You’re lucky that we haven’t kicked you out!” 

When I was 14, my mother forced me to get married and move out. My first marriage was a total disaster—my in-laws and husband were also abusive. Abandoned by both my own family and my husband’s family, I attempted to commit suicide by jumping off a cliff. However, I was forcibly pulled back to safety by a few people. 

My second husband also abused me. A year into our marriage, our neighbor’s home caught fire and our home was burnt in the blaze. As our neighbor couldn’t afford to compensate us so that we could rebuild, my husband and I had to move into the cattle barn. When I became pregnant, nobody took care of me. Right before I was about to give birth to my daughter, my sister-in-law gave me 20 eggs. But my husband traded the eggs for beef that he ate all by himself. Severely malnourished by that point, I had prolonged labor delivering my daughter. It wasn’t until my aunt found out about the situation and fed me a bowl of porridge that I was able to finally give birth. 

I later developed a variety of ailments: heart disease, rheumatoid arthritis, stomach disease, esophageal cancer, breast cancer, frequent headaches, and chronic pain. The torment of my physical body, on top of our destitute financial situation, added to the fact that I was unable to work, took me to the depths of despair. If I wasn’t crying, I was thinking about how to take my own life. 

My husband continued to verbally abuse me. He told me that my existence was a burden to others, and even told me to stand in the middle of the street and get killed by a car. If I died, at least he could demand compensation from the driver. 

Seeing that I was desperate, my older daughter—wise beyond her years—held me tightly. “Mom, you can’t die,” she said. “If you die, we won’t have a mom anymore!” 

My daughter also found my younger sister and told her about my situation. My sister persuaded me, “If you die, who will care for your children? They would be miserable.” For the sake of my family, I finally gave up the idea of suicide. 

But just as I got around this curve, I was dealt another devastating blow: my older daughter, and my dearest daughter, was kidnapped at the age of 14. I was unable to find her, no matter how hard I tried. For an entire month, I was bedridden, my health nearing rock bottom. I was truly on the verge of death, with only a breath left. 

A Glimmer of Hope

Just as I thought I could live no longer, I had a dream one night. 

In the dream, the sun was scorching hot in the sky, but I stood under a large umbrella that protected me. A voice said to me, “Don’t cry. Don’t cry. Just a few more years, and things will get better.” 

I wanted to see who was holding the umbrella for me, but as soon as I turned, the umbrella transformed into a big tree. I could sense that someone was still looking out for me in this world, and caring for me. It felt comforting and gave me a new hope for life. 

Two years later, we found my daughter. I borrowed some money and renovated a few rooms in my house. With myself living in one, I rented the other two rooms and earned some money that way. I also grew some vegetables and crops. My life had indeed improved significantly.

Taking Up Falun Dafa

One day in 1997, I met an acquaintance of mine while I was on my way to get groceries. She knew about my terrible health, and told me that Falun Dafa had wonderful effects for healing the body. It was a Buddhist practice, she said, and she was also practicing it. 

On April 30, 1997, I decided to visit the Falun Dafa practice site in my area. The practitioners there were very caring and taught me the exercises. After doing the exercises just once, I felt full of strength. I kept practicing for a few more days and my stomachaches and headaches were gone. My appetite also increased. 

Since then, I went to the practice site every morning and listened to fellow practitioners read Zhuan Falun in the evening, because I never learned how to read. Soon, Master Li, the founder of Falun Dafa, began to purify my body. Not long after, I vomited up the gallstones I had and my back pain vanished. It was Master who saved me and gave me a new life, and for that I am eternally grateful. 

Master also protected me in a few accidents. The first time I rode a new tricycle, I fell while trying to swerve away from a big truck coming my way. The tricycle was overturned and I was pinned under it. My back and legs were severely injured. But with Master’s protection, I recovered in less than a month.

With my now-improved health, I found a job as a chef at a lumber factory. Both the workers and factory manager were very satisfied with my work: the food became better and the cost became lower. The factory manager was impressed with my work ethic and asked me to care for his children and parents and do other housekeeping work for him. I did the job for 11 years and only quit after my daughter-in-law asked me to help care for my grandchild. 

We built a six-floor apartment building on the land of our mobile home. Except for a few rooms we live in ourselves, we rent out everything else. We no longer had to worry about our livelihood. I’m grateful for everything Master has given me.

In my spare time, I go out with my fellow practitioners every day to talk to people about Dafa. I often meet people who have a predestined relationship with Dafa and most of them easily agree to quit the Chinese Communist Party and its affiliated organizations. Also, with help from Master and fellow practitioners, I eventually learned how to read Zhuan Falun myself.

My Happy Family 

After witnessing my changes, all of my family understood that Dafa is good. Both my younger sister and her son have taken up Dafa themselves. My mother often apologized to me for mistreating me in my childhood. Now, she sings my praises to other people for treating her so well, and tells people about how great Falun Dafa is. 

My husband suffered a stroke in March 2022 and was hospitalized. I urged him to recite the phrases “Falun Dafa is good; Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance is good.” He did as asked, and was soon discharged. Since then, he became more gentle and no longer swears.

My younger brother also recited the phrases after he was diagnosed with stomach cancer and has since recovered.