(Minghui.org) I was a teacher at a university, and I’ve now retired. I practiced Falun Dafa for nearly 29 years. Falun Dafa gives me a healthy body and teaches me to be a good and selfless person and to follow the principles of Truthfulness, Compassion, and Forbearance. When I stopped being selfish, I became considerate and kind to others. I’ve also benefited and found that being selfless is a joy.
I mingled with the students during the class break. The weather was cold, and I noticed a female student’s hands were swollen and cracked from the cold. I felt sorry for her and asked what happened to her hands. She said, “Teacher, during Chinese New Year I helped my mother pick vegetables. I washed and sold them in the market during the whole winter break.
I said, “Most of you are the only child in your families.” She said, “My home is in a poor, remote mountain. I have a brother and a sister. My mother hid so she could give birth to me. Afterward, the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) penalized my family. So, my name is Duo Duo [hiding]. Three of us attend university. My parents make a living by growing and selling vegetables. Their lives are hard. They can only pay our school fees, and we have to cover our own expenses.” She said she worked in a supermarket on weekends to earn money for her daily expenses.
She usually just ate buns to save money. I was very sympathetic and invited her to have a meal in a nearby small restaurant. Sometimes I took her home for dinner. She was too thin. I talked to her, encouraged her, and praised her. I told her to study hard but pay attention to her health and become a good student both academically and morally. I hoped she could get a scholarship to alleviate her financial burden.
It snowed hard during the university final exam period one winter. When I stepped outside after the exam, I saw Duo Duo standing outside the room, shivering from the cold. I asked her why she didn’t go home since the other students rushed to go home. She said in a low voice that she didn’t have any money to buy a train ticket. I said I had money and asked how much. She said that it was half price for students and told me the amount. I gave her the amount plus some extra so that she could buy food on the train and buy the bus ticket home. She accepted it and said, “Thank you, teacher! Thank you, teacher!” She bowed deeply to me and left happily.
When she was in difficulty, she thought of me and trusted me. I could help her. I felt comforted. Duo Duo studied hard; her grades were good, and so was her character. She graduated with high scores. I felt happy for her.
One morning after class was over, I was hurrying to take the school bus home. Two female students ran after me and caught up with me. They shouted while they were running, “Please wait for us!” I slowed down, turned, and said, “I am rushing home. If you need my help, please come in the afternoon. Is that OK?” But they ran to me, gasping for breath. One said, “You are so nice! We don’t need your help but want to tell you that you are like my mother!”
Hearing their words, I was moved and said, “Thank you for your trust.”
When I was lecturing that morning, most of the students listened to me attentively. Only several at the back were distracted. When I finished the lecture, there was some time left. I talked about how to be a good student and a good person. I hoped that they would cherish the beautiful time at university and not waste their time. I hoped that what they learned would contribute to society in the future, that they’d be worthy of their parents’ hard work, and respect them. I also told them to come to me if they needed help since they were away from their homes and their parents. I would certainly try my best to help them, and this was my promise. They applauded me after I finished.
I am a Falun Dafa practitioner and have practiced Falun Dafa for more than 20 years. I was very disciplined at work. I always came to the office early and cleaned the office before everyone came. Besides doing a good job, I studied professional courses and improved my professional skills.
My managers and colleagues acknowledged me. They said that I was a rare talent in my profession at our university. I never refused the work my leaders assigned me to do. Even if they assigned me a job for other departments, I happily accepted it and finished it on time. One day we had a general meeting in our department. The leader was giving a speech. Suddenly, he said loudly, “You see, Teacher Li (referring to me) always comes early and leaves late. She works hard. We can learn from her.
Our school has an annual review at the end of each year and awards outstanding teachers. Many competed for it because they could get bonuses and lay a good foundation for future promotion. It was a headache for the managers because the award quota was limited, and they didn’t know how to make it fair and cause less conflict.
On top of some specific requirements, one criterion was that whoever got the most anonymous votes had the highest chance of being awarded. Each year I got the most votes, and I won the outstanding worker award almost every year. My colleagues acknowledged my work performance and my character.
One year, the department chair asked me if I could give up the award and let another teacher have it because they needed it to apply for promotion. I immediately agreed.
Falun Dafa teaches me to be a good and considerate person. I put the principles of Truthfulness, Compassion, and Forbearance into practice every day. Some people say that I’m foolish. Some say that I’m too nice for my own good. But many more people acknowledge me. Superficially, it looks like I lose a bit of my personal interest when I’m considerate. I feel that it is a huge blessing to practice Falun Dafa.
I hope that many people read the precious book Zhuan Falun and find the happiness and joy of being a good person. Thank you, Master, for introducing Falun Dafa and teaching us to be considerate and good people.