(Minghui.org) I knew about Falun Dafa in 1994 but I only began to practice in 1999 after my whole family moved to Canada. The persecution started soon after. I was extremely moved by the stories about Fa-rectification published on the Minghui website. I hoped that one day I too could assist Master Li (the founder) in Fa-rectification.
I joined Minghui in 2000. I was asked to write a report on a health expo held in my area and this was the beginning of my 19-year-journey of writing articles for Minghui. Initially, I did not know how to write reports but this is what I was destined to do and I must do well.
When I was in school, from 5th grade through junior high school, I attended a language tutoring class every weekend. My tutor was highly educated and well versed in the ancient Chinese language. He had his students write an essay every week and he would go through it. I became interested in literature, writing and traditional Chinese culture. Looking back I realized that this was arranged by Master. The writing skills and knowledge I gained when I was a child laid a foundation for my future involvement in Fa-rectification.
Many major events happened in Ottawa, the capital city of Canada in the early years of the persecution. There were various activities held by practitioners to expose the persecution such as rallies, parades, SOS rescue campaigns, press conferences, lawsuits, different proclamations, congressional hearings, visits from Chinese officials, organ harvesting, Canadian government investigations of Chinese communist spies, infiltration by the Chinese Communist Party and so on. Every few days something major would take place. It was an intense fight between good and evil. I felt Master was pushing us forward.
I remember a project coordinator made a remark at that time. Half of the impact of these activities held by practitioners was due to our media reports. Through our reports, our readers – everyday people, the evil perpetrators and practitioners, hear our voices. In the process we clarify the truth and reduce the pressure on mainland Chinese practitioners and suffocate the evil. I understood what a great responsibility I had.
Things were hard in the beginning. A lot of time and effort was needed to publish a report – preliminary understanding of the event, coming up with a plan for conducting interviews, carrying out interviews, transcribing, translation, writing the report and editing, writing captions for photos and so on. Often one person did all these tasks as few practitioners were involved. For someone who had not been practicing cultivation for long, I was constantly under tremendous pressure struggling to balance studies and family as well as finding time to do the exercises and read the Fa. I frequently had to work till 2-3 a.m. in the morning to finish a report. Some days I had to write several articles. Thanks to Dafa, Master's blessings and support as well as encouragement from practitioners, I managed to overcome these obstacles.
I used to resent it when practitioners pointed out errors in the reports I wrote. I appeared calm on the surface but I was unhappy inside. This went on until one day I made a major mistake – I wrote the wrong date. I was careless and irresponsible yet Idid not like it when I was told I was wrong. Isn’t feedback from practitioners a chance for me to improve? As I matured and improved in cultivation, such mistakes happened less frequently.
Due to lack of manpower, I began to write for the Epoch Times and other platforms as well as Minghui. Besides articles related to clarifying the truth, I wrote news reports on current affairs. Increasingly I felt overwhelmed by the growing workload.
At times when there was a major incident, to save time I would make simple adjustments and submit the report to several media sources simultaneously. Editors from Minghui would comment that what I wrote seemed more appropriate for the Epoch Times while editors at the Epoch Times said the report was more suited to the Minghui website. I got too busy to do my job properly and I was dissatisfied with the articles I wrote.
I reflected on the situation and saw that I was attached to proving myself. I also did not trust other practitioners to help. As a veteran practitioner, I should encourage and help more practitioners get involved in truth-clarification projects. Gradually I trained those working in the Epoch Times in writing, translating and editing skills. Before a major event, I tried to assign jobs to other practitioners. Thus I was able to focus my energy on writing articles for Minghui and at the same time allow more practitioners to get involved.
My husband is not a practitioner and I’ve had many lessons over the years on how to balance work, family life and cultivation. Eight years ago I noticed that my body was aging rapidly. I was exhausted, my hair turned gray and I was overweight. I could only do the sitting meditation for half an hour. I was basically half asleep when I worked late into the night writing reports. My performance in my everyday job was also affected.
I recalled Master’s words in Zhuan Falun:
“Falun Dafa is a practice of mind and body, and so there is an exercise component to it.”
If my physical condition was in such a terrible state, how can I convince people around me Falun Dafa is good? I decided to do the five-sets of exercises every day. Coincidentally, a few of us decided to begin writing down how much time we spent reading the Fa and doing the exercises everyday. From then on, no matter how busy I was, I found time to do all the exercises and read at least one lecture of Zhuan Falun every day.
My health slowly improved and I slimmed down. I had less wrinkles and looked radiant. An old friend whom I hadn't seen for 20 years said I had not aged at all.
The area I lived in has been hosting Shen Yun performances since 2007. Every year I feel that I have benefited a lot from my participation in the project. In the beginning, I was responsible for conducting interviews and editing reports. I also had to take care of logistics for the reporting team such as meals, accommodations, etc. I was under a lot of pressure and many times I could not focus on my writing.
In 2012, after the performances ended, I had no idea how to go about writing a summary report. It was noisy and people kept asking me this and that. I had no time to myself to complete my assignment. I asked Master for help and sent righteous thoughts. Gradually my thoughts became clear and a complete framework for the article formed in my mind. I thought of the opening scene in the show and recalled some of the comments made by politicians I had interviewed. I knew what I could write in my report.
I strive to write something new in my reports and avoid repetition. When I put my heart into writing Shen Yun reports and pay attention to details, Master will give me wisdom and inspiration.
In 2013 while driving to the theater for Shen Yun's opening show, I saw a huge moon emitting warm, peaceful light. I felt as if I was awakened and gained a lot of inspiration while watching the show. Together with the reviews I gathered from audience interviews I was able to come up with a good article that night.
My experience is, in order to understand the messages portrayed by Shen Yun performances and write interesting reports on the show, it is important to study the Fa well, make breakthroughs in cultivation and improve our professional skills.
Master gave those involved in Minghui a big encouragement in his lecture during last year’s Washington DC Fa conference.
“All of our media are saving people, and are extraordinary for doing so. All have had an enormous impact in the Fa rectification, and have made a contribution beyond measure.” (“2018 Fa Teaching Given in Washington, D.C.”, Team Yellow Translation)
But I know what I’ve done is far from enough.
More than 10 years ago, I heard a song “Sit by my side” during a candlelight vigil held in Washington D.C. The lyrics sounded familiar. I realized the lyrics came from a poem written by a practitioner in England which I translated and edited into Chinese and submitted to Minghui in 2001. Who would have thought a casual translation would become the lyrics to a popular song among Dafa practitioners?
This led me to think of Master’s words:
“Cultivation” is the perfection and fulfillment of a being.” (“2018 Fa Teaching Given in Washington, D.C.”, Team Yellow Translation)
Therefore we should not look down on anything we have quietly done. Perhaps in the near future what we have done will make an impact in the world because we are Dafa disciples fulfilled by Fa-rectification.
I would like to conclude my sharing with this phrase from the song “Sit by my side”:
“Together in silenceOur wishes can make a difference”
Thank you everyone!
(Presented at the Minghui’s 20th Anniversary Fa Conference-selected and edited)