(Minghui.org) I'm an elementary school teacher who practices Falun Dafa. I strive to improve my character, so I stopped taking kickbacks and gifts from parents. I only focused on doing my job well, being responsible to the students, and treating everyone kindly.
Whenever the parents gave me a gift, I would tell them that I was a Dafa practitioner and my master taught me to follow the principles of Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance and that I shouldn’t accept gifts. [In China, it is a common practice for parents to give gifts to teachers in exchange for more favorable opportunities for their child.]
If a parent still insisted on leaving me a gift, I would later find how much it cost, send the money back, and tell them the facts about the practice and the persecution. They usually had a better understanding afterward and no longer gave me gifts.
I also explained to the clerks at the bookstore that I wouldn't accept kickbacks. The clerks then charged my students less for the books. For the same amount of money students in other classes paid for one book, my students could buy three.
Challenging a Slanderous Exam Question
Master Li (the founder) said,
“While working, your tone of voice, your kindheartedness, and your reasoning can change a person’s heart, whereas commands never could! If others are not convinced deep down inside but only superficially comply, they will still conduct themselves according to their own will when no one is around to see them.” (“Clearheadedness,” Essentials for Further Advancement)
After I let go of my anger, resentment, and disappointment when the students didn’t follow the rules, my work improved, as did my relationships with my students.
I was once a test proctor for a final exam with another teacher who was about to begin her role as the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) secretary of the school.
After I distributed the exam, I saw a yes/no question asking, “Is Falun Gong a cult?” I showed the other teacher the question, and it surprised her, too. I then looked at the students’ answers and saw that all of them had answered, “Yes.”
I thought it was not accidental that I'd encountered this. As a practitioner, I should uphold Dafa's integrity and not let the students be poisoned by the CCP’s lies.
I said to the students, “Hi, everyone. This is not normally done, but I would like to share something with you regarding a question about Falun Dafa. If you need to judge whether it is right or wrong, you should at least know something. I am here to tell you that I have been practicing Falun Dafa for over 20 years. Use me as a reference to judge how to answer the question.”
I saw that all the students changed their answers.
I later went to find the person in charge of grading the exams and left a letter on her desk. I hoped that she would choose to do the right thing.
I took a copy of the exam to the principal’s office several days later and showed him the question. He said, “We don’t have any answers. Our superiors send us the exam.”
“I don’t intend to change you, as I understand your situation,” I replied. “I just want you to be a witness. We are all models for the children and should be responsible to them. Falun Dafa is being unreasonably persecuted, and lies are poisoning our students’ minds.
“We know that all the CCP’s campaigns always start with lies. I know you can’t change anything temporarily, but please remember that good will triumph over evil. Let your conscience guide you and help more people understand that the CCP is evil.”
Taking Care of Unfinished Business
Influenced by the education bureau, the school suspended me and another teacher, who ended up being sentenced to prison.
Not all of the 100 teachers and two thousand or so students at the school knew the facts about the persecution. As a practitioner, I shouldered the responsibility of reaching out to them.
Some parents didn’t know the facts and reported me to the education bureau or the state security agency. I then took the opportunity to talk to people face-to-face in my spare time. After I informed the rest of the students about the persecution, they all believed, “Falun Dafa is good. Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance is good.”
