(Minghui.org) Greetings, esteemed Teacher and fellow practitioners.
I am an 18-year-old student who discovered Falun Dafa through my mother. She was learning the exercises from a female practitioner in the château [castle] of Méry-sur-Oise park, a spot filled with greenery, that seems a natural place to do the Dafa exercises.
My mother had been introduced to Falun Dafa by a friend of hers, after which her curiosity made her check further into this cultivation practice. Reading Zhuan Falun was fascinating, as it gave her answers to many of her questions. Not just that, her disposition improved and she seemed to become happier.
One day Mother suggested that I join them at the exercise site. I hesitated at first because this was out of my comfort zone. However, a friend of mine agreed to come along, so we tagged along to the practice site in 2014.
When doing the exercises, I did not feel anything in particular. But the lady teaching us was very patient and kind. I did not jump into the practice and it took me an entire year to read Zhuan Falun.
Prior to reading Zhuan Falun, I did not believe in anything. However, I held a vague hope that gods existed. Traditional religions did not appeal to me. After I finally had read this book, I tried to believe that everything it said was true. I wasn’t quite convinced, but strangely enough, I wanted to make myself believe in it. I realized that I needed some time to digest all this and that it would take me some time to accept everything, but still I was pleased to have a new outlook on life.
Then, at the beginning of 2016, I heard from practitioners about the “Fa rectification.” To find out more about it, I went to the Minghui website, which was an eye-opener. I realized that sentient beings were dependent on us and that a practitioner should clarify the truth about Dafa, and do the three things.
That came as a shock and I asked myself, “What's going on?” Dafa opened my eyes about the world and also about the celestial situation. I didn’t know whether I should believe in all this. Then, I told myself, “Think for a minute. If all this is true and you did nothing, wouldn’t you feel terrible about yourself?”
Teacher said:
“Each life, each person, is not simple. Behind them is a massive group of beings in the cosmos that they represent. When one person gains salvation, that represents all of the beings behind him gaining salvation in the future. [I say this] because the vast majority of the people on this earth, of today’s people, are heavenly kings who descended to earth, who incarnated here as human beings.” (“What is a Dafa Disciple” from Teaching the Fa at the Conference XI)
Two years after obtaining the Fa, I decided to do the three things diligently, and let go of my attachments.
When it came to clarifying the truth, I left fliers in mailboxes. For me, everyone living in my area had a strong affinity with me, as if maybe they had been family members in a prior life. Almost every weekend and during school breaks, I would get up at dawn and leave fliers in people’s mailboxes.
I got up early, because I did not want people to see me, sometimes before 5 a.m. when it was still pitch dark, as my parents did not object. Although I was not scared, I still walked in the light of the lampposts only. I have 10 years of karate under my belt, so I would be able to defend myself had I needed to. Furthermore, it was extremely pleasant to be surrounded by the calmness of the night with only the starry sky watching me. Although I enjoyed the serenity of the night, I felt that I had to step up my truth clarification efforts. Most importantly, I had to let go of my fear of being seen.
Therefore, I handed fliers to people. That was quite tough at first, as I was not ready for people to talk to me or ask questions. I was not familiar with what truly went on in China, and to talk about the information in the fliers was beyond my skills. All I wanted was to save people and I knew that the fliers could do that. Anyway, no one asked questions or bothered me. I think that that big smile on my face really helped.
I did talk to my eleventh grade class and gave a short presentation. I also talked to my teachers. Additionally, I put fliers in their mailboxes but also handed them out occasionally. When in twelfth grade, I left fliers in the school library, hoping that people would look at them. I could not bring myself to hand people the fliers directly. My class schedule was great. I believe that it was arranged by Teacher so that I could put fliers into mailboxes between classes.
I participated in the French Minghui Summer Camp 2017 and met wonderful people. It helped me feel less isolated because I had not known how many practitioners there were in France. We talked to people in a marketplace, and for the first time I could talk to people about Dafa and even answer questions.
Not everything was serious. I was trying to memorize Lunyu while going for a walk. I looked up at the sky as the sun was starting to go down and I saw a cloud in the form of thumbs-up. I thought that Teacher was encouraging me, which made me laugh with happiness.
(Presented at the 2017 European Fa Conference)