(Minghui.org) This practitioner has been taking care of her paralyzed husband for 30 years. Her parents-in-law and her sister-in-law all live in her home. She also has two daughters. The family of seven relies on the small shop she runs for a living. Their life has been tough, but she underwent significant changes after starting Falun Dafa cultivation practice. She handles problems according to the principles of Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance, respects her in-laws, cares for her husband, and loves her children from the bottom of her heart. She is a role model for her relatives, friends, and neighbors. They also believe in Falun Dafa. The following is her self-narration.
In August 1990, the fourth year of my marriage, my husband was in a car accident and became a paraplegic. I have two daughters, the youngest being only eight months old at the time. My husband has two brothers and three sisters; he is the youngest. Both in-laws live with us. When he was injured, I felt the sky had collapsed!
I opened and ran a small shop in 1994. The shop was busy. I had two young daughters and also had to take care of my bedridden husband, his sister, who came home after her divorce, and everyone else. I was so exhausted that I did not want to go on. But looking at my two young children, I didn’t have the heart to leave them behind without a mother.
My husband lost all his senses below the mid-chest, and back then, there were no adult diapers available. I had to constantly check if he was soiled, and if he got infected or developed bedsores, he suffered more. When he wet himself at night, I had to get up immediately to change and wash him and the bedding.
When I was asleep, my husband sometimes did not have the heart to wake me up, so he tried to clean himself and ended up with feces and urine everywhere. The winter winds in the northeast were bone-chilling, and the nights in the bungalows were even colder. To save money, I washed everything with cold water. My hands were frozen red, my fingers could not straighten, and the pain was excruciating!
Thinking about my elderly in-laws, bedridden husband, and two young children, I could not sleep at night. I had repeated nightmares, in which I fell straight down from a high place in the darkness.
When I couldn’t go on like that any longer, compassionate Master guided me to obtain Dafa. I learned Falun Dafa on May 7, 1996, the happiest and most precious day of my life. Since then, my outlook on life and the world has changed. I follow the principles of Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance, and I sincerely respect my parents-in-law, care for my husband, and love my children.
I took excellent care of my in-laws, and others thought I was their daughter. My in-laws both passed away peacefully in their 80s. My husband had always been supportive of my Falun Dafa practice, and toward the end of his life he could sit up and move in a wheelchair. He tried his best to help me with Dafa work. He passed away peacefully in a hospital. My two daughters both graduated from college, and they respect me and are good to me.
All my relatives, friends, and neighbors supported me in practicing Falun Dafa. I had a cousin, and whenever fellow practitioners and I needed a car, he would come with his car to help. I once asked if he would be afraid to be involved with us.
“No, I am not; why should I be afraid? Look at you all, so brave! I feel so proud!” he said.
“Dafa practitioners are trustworthy and very kind, just like you. Facing such difficulties, you took good care of your bedridden husband for 30 years. You set the best example for us all in our family. We all should respect our elders, love our children, and be considerate to all.”
A neighbor came to my store to shop. Her words were touching, “We all know Dafa is good. Your actions over the years tells us that Falun Dafa is good. Keep it up and cultivate well!”
My sister-in-law’s (who lived with us for several years after her divorce), children spoke highly of and appreciated Dafa. When she worked as a housekeeper, if she came across Dafa flyers scattered on the ground, she picked them up, cleaned them, and left them near the windows for others to take. When she told others the truth of Dafa she used my story:
“My sister-in-law also practices Dafa. She took good care of my parents and my bedridden brother for 30 years! She is a great benefactor to our family. Our entire family recites ‘Falun Dafa is good, Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance is good,’ and we are all blessed. We have good and virtuous youngsters, healthy and happy.”
(Selected submission to celebrate World Falun Dafa Day on Minghui.org)