(Clearwisdom.net) Greetings, Honorable Master! Greetings, Fellow Practitioners!
I was introduced to the Fa in November 2001 but was not diligent and almost did not stick with the practice. When I attended the February 2003 Hong Kong Experience Sharing Conference, I noticed that even young disciples were able to recite Hong Yin fluently. I realized my shortcomings and deficiencies. From then on I began to study the Fa more and positively validated the Fa.
I am self-employed and have no family burdens. Therefore, I am able to completely devote myself to validating the Fa. Whichever project needed me, I would do that project. During this period I discovered that clarifying the truth is also a process of cultivation and improvement. For example, my competitive mentality emerged when I clarified the truth on the phone or on the Internet, or when a person ignorant of the truth verbally abused me. Eventually, no matter how abusive some people were, I could calmly ask them not to be angry and clarify the truth to them with a serene mind. Although I did much Dafa work, I mainly stayed at home then.
Soon after the Nine Commentaries on the Communist Party was published I realized its importance. In order to expose the tyranny of the CCP, I went to many places to collect signatures. I went to cities, food markets, schools, and even the Jiufen Mountain area to collect signatures. Bad weather--wind, scorching sun and rain--always tested my desire for comfort. I went through the process of choosing between human and divine thoughts many times.
In June 2005 I began to act as a coordinator and organized various truth clarification activities to expose the persecution, such as an anti-torture exhibition, the "Truthfulness-Compassion-Tolerance" art exhibition, and a candlelight vigil to expose the CCP's crime of harvesting organs from living Falun Gong practitioners. Differences in understandings during these activities caused us to run into some conflicts. Eventually we all understood and were tolerant of each other and reached a consensus, leading to positive outcomes for validating the Fa.
In September 2006 I assumed work in the local Epoch Times office and played several roles, including reporter, salesman, delivering the newspaper, and fee collector. Although I realized that the stage was being set for the Fa, I still complained and felt like a victim each time I had to go out to promote The Epoch Times newspaper at city hall and to merchants and residents. My most vivid memory was the time the woman distributor (a non-practitioner) mistook me for a thief and thought that I was stealing the newspaper. She verbally abused me for nearly half an hour out in public. Although this abuse was unjustified, I eventually understood that I should have said greeted her first and then taken the newspapers away. In addition, those in charge at the newspaper office did not give her prior notice, leaving her feeling disrespected. Later, she became so angry that she decided to cancel the contract and no longer helped us distribute the newspaper. I had no choice but to deliver it by myself. It took me two or three hours to deliver the newspaper to only two customers. How long would it take me to finish delivering the newspaper to over a hundred customers?
I called the distributor and went to her office in person to apologize, saying that I hoped that she could continue to help deliver the newspaper for us. She still did not agree and said with a bad attitude, "From now on no one will help you deliver the newspaper." She was the most senior distributor, so other distributors dared not help us. [These distributors are not with The Epoch Times.]
I had never had to deal with so much grief! I could not sleep well for a week and often could not help crying. When I was on the brink of despair, I clarified the facts to another distributor. He understood our purpose for publishing the newspaper and actively helped us to deliver it. I began to feel relieved. This incident made me realize that, although we seem to wander about in ordinary society, it is not a coincidence that we meet different kinds of people who test us. Because we are scolded and insulted, we can quickly improve our xinxing through suffering.
Of course I have had more gratifying encounters. One customer was a bride from China who has been in Taiwan for many years. She liked The Epoch Times very much. When I mentioned quitting the CCP she looked around and seemed quite scared. Later on a practitioner helped her overcome her fear and helped her to quit the CCP. Now she often helps her relatives and friends from China to quit the CCP and/or its affiliated organizations. She has already become a a contact person for quitting the CCP.
Last September I worked in The Epoch Times distribution department and had to go to Taipei to work. It took me three hours each day to commute. My dislike for suffering often emerged. When I set one foot out of the rapid transit station I thought, "Why do I spend so much time suffering?" As I took the next step I thought the opposite, "Don't I want to validate the Fa? Don't I want to offer sentient beings salvation? It is nothing to suffer." I prevailed. However, due to different understandings, conflicts then occurred between the practitioners in The Epoch Times or the office and me. In the end, I realized that no matter how many opinions I had, I should let go of them. In addition, I corrected my attitude according to Fa principles and cooperated with the whole body of practitioners, because I wanted to walk on the path Master has arranged.
On June 29 of this year I signed up to participate in a parade in Hong Kong. Numerous practitioners were repatriated to Taiwan then or deterred by the Taiwan aviation company. Approximately 50 practitioners were stopped at the Hong Kong Immigration Department. On June 30 some practitioners did the exercises and some displayed a banner and clarified the facts to people. We asked that the detained practitioners be released. We had strong righteous thoughts and formed a solid body, so the police at the airport and armed police dared not come close to us.
We disbanded to rest that evening. The police began to go their rounds as if they were facing the formidable enemies. The morning of July 1 they transferred more than 200 police to the airport, including armed police and other police to surround us. I was frightened. To eliminate my fear, I took the lead to sing, "Falun Dafa Is Good." My voice trembled, because my fear was overwhelming. Six policemen eventually arrested one practitioner. They lifted, dragged, and used various other means to arrest us, causing a chaotic scene. They pulled me, spraining my ankles. They both swelled.
After returning to Taiwan, whenever I moved, I felt gut-wrenching pain. I hurt so severely that it took me several minutes to take several steps. The next morning I told a practitioner that I could not go to the newspaper office to work because of my severely injured feet. Much to my surprise, the practitioner arrived with his car and drove me to work. I had no choice but to go to work. After arriving at the newspaper office, I pretended to have strong righteous thoughts and covered up my fear by validating myself. I talked about what had happened to other practitioners as if it was nothing, when in actuality I was not very calm.
Many practitioners who worked at the paper stayed for only a short time, because our circulation had not increased and many conflicts arose among the practitioners. A practitioner phoned me, "You have been working in the distribution department for a year, but circulation has not increased. How long will you continue to work in this department?" He said it without thinking, but I paid attention to it. His words moved me deeply. I thought, "If the newspaper circulation has not increased, shouldn't I take the blame and resign?" A while later when I attended group Fa study, a practitioner mentioned that the practitioners in North America did not approve of the frequent turnover in the Taiwan Epoch Times staff. They thought that Dafa disciples should not take a detour when they run into difficulties. When I heard this, I realized that I should not treat cultivation issues with a human mindset. Consequently, I decided to face the difficulties and fulfill my own vow and mission.
Regarding how to treat coordinators who make mistakes, Master told us:
"If he is removed upon making a mistake, and then the next person [who is installed is soon] removed since he's going to make mistakes as well, then that's not what I want. I want to temper him and have him mature. Put another way, would it work if when you, a Dafa disciple, made a mistake I didn't allow you to be a Dafa disciple anymore and replaced you with someone else? (Disciples laugh) But when that person made a mistake he wouldn't be allowed to be a Dafa disciple, and we'd swap in another person--would that work? Problems are bound to come up as you go about cultivating, and when they do, the important thing is how everyone helps him, with goodwill, to change for the better, as opposed to holding him accountable somehow or criticizing him." ("Fa Teaching at the 2007 New York Fa Conference")
I realize that the practitioners who are participating in The Epoch Times want to do their work well. Although they work hard, faced with a lack of manpower, materials, and financial resources, it is difficult to see its effects immediately. If all of us can be more considerate and less critical, we can avoid a high turnover of personnel. We will do better and better, becoming mature through being tempered.
Thank you, Master! Thank you, everyone!
December 13, 2007
