(Clearwisdom.net) Right from the start, the day was a dreary one. A thick blanket of gray clouds lined the sky, and although it was not too cold, rain intermittently trickled down, sometimes heavily sometimes lightly.
No matter what the conditions were, as I looked at my fellow practitioners, all I saw were beaming smiles and enthusiastic attitudes. We were personally invited to participate in this parade by the parade organizer, who was very eager to see us perform. He had seen us in other parades in the past and at other events and he told me he knew that we were good. He admired our dedication and our approach to things, so he took the liberty of contacting us to participate in this parade.
From the beginning we decided to perform the Red Ribbon Dance. Although we and our ribbons were all wet and did not flow all that freely in the air, we had a great time performing the dance. The crowd was sparse due to the uncooperative weather, but even this was hardly mentioned by any of us.
A great effort by many Dafa Disciples from three states was put forth for this parade, and that effort was not at all hampered by the adverse weather conditions. We sent forth righteous thoughts as a group just before the parade began at 12pm. The feeling was one of purity and commitment. Immediately following our righteous thoughts, we mobilized in just a few minutes as the parade had already started to advance. We did not hold anyone up. It was amazing how quickly and calmly we put ourselves together. Many people offered suggestions; they were all reasonable and all were attended to.
This parade was a great opportunity to strengthen our resolve in what we have learned from Master. Not once did I sense any discord among us that day. We all were willing to do our part to make our performance a success. Everyone played their parts, and played them well, both young and old. We spread the message of Truth, Compassion, and Tolerance in a dignified and optimistic way, despite the conditions of the day.
After the parade, just before we were ready to depart, the parade organizer drove up and told me that we definitely are on the list for next year, and thanked us for a beautiful performance.
á 
á 
Category: Parades & Other Community Events
