A Few Stories from Practising Outside

One day in early May of last year, I decided wholeheartedly that I would go outside to practice at Copley Square everyday, rain or shine. And since that day, a number of interesting stories have transpired, some of which I will share with you today.

I still remember the first day I went out to practice. It was just such a wonderful feeling to practice outside that I felt that there could be nothing to stop me from coming every day.

The second day I went out to practice, I really felt I was practising here and doing exactly what my fellow practitioners in China are suffering for the right do to. It is this exact environment to be able to practice and cultivate openly and freely that we are all working so hard to restore. Practising outside felt like a way of denying the persecution. It was the first time that I remember feeling so close to the practitioners in China, and I truly sensed that we are all one body that morning.

In early June, I woke up late and I was contemplating whether or not I should still go out to practice. I thought for a moment and decided that I should go, even if it was for just one exercise. I should go out to practice everyday as I had promised myself. After arriving, I noticed that a bus load of Chinese tourists had just arrived and were taking pictures. I held onto some reservations about approaching them at first. Then I decided to approach one elderly couple by asking if they would like me to help take a picture for them. They happily accepted the offer and I tried my best to take the picture with the best angle. After I offered them a Chinese newsletter, "Qingliu," they looked at it for a moment, and then looked up at me. I told them "It's for you." They accepted the newsletter with a smile, and thanked me as they made their way back to the bus.

I turned on the music, placed some blue brochures in front of me and started the practice with the first exercise. After practising the first exercise, I opened my eyes and saw that all the flyers had blown away. It was already time to go to work anyway, so I packed up and picked up the flyers. As I picked each one up, I held it out to the people who were walking by. Each and every one of them smiled and happily accepted the flyers.

One gentleman even walked up to me and asked if he could have one of the flyers. He asked, "Is this 'Falun Gong?" I was a little surprised, and said "Yes, it is. I practice it here in the mornings." He said, "I know, I see you every morning." He went on to tell me that once, when he was watching me practice, someone asked what it was I was practising, and whether it was Taichi. He clarified to them that, "No, it's Falun Gong." He told the person about the persecution in China and that this person should go to the Boston Common to check out the information.

I was very grateful that he knew about the truth, and told him that practitioners in Boston have been going to the Commons every Saturday for the last few years even throughout the winter. He was very touched, and promised that he would tell more people about Falun Gong.

Another morning in July, as I was pulling into Copley Square, I saw a WBZ TV Van parked on the sidewalk filming something. I decided to place myself in the middle of the park, with the slight hope that they might see me. During the practice, I emptied my mind and knew that I shouldn't focus on whether or not they would notice me. Half an hour into the practice, I heard them packing up. I decided that I could make up for the practice, and should not pass this opportunity to clarify the truth to them. I eliminated any thoughts of pursuing anything from them, and held firmly in my heart that I just wanted them to know the truth. Hurrying back to the car, I grabbed a copy of the 2003 Human Rights Report and a couple of flyers. They were already in the van and ready to leave when I walked up to them. The gentleman rolled down his window as I approached them.

I said, "I'm not sure if you saw me, but I was practising a meditation practice called 'Falun Gong'." He said, "Yes, we certainly did. Actually we put you on air three times." Our conversation took off from there and I continued to tell them about how practitioners in China were being persecuted for doing exactly what I was doing. They were very interested, not only about hearing about the persecution in China, but they also wanted to learn the practice themselves. We exchange contact information, and have stayed in touch ever since.

Then there was a morning in late September where I was practising the standing exercises. During the third exercise, I heard a young female voice whisper something behind me. Then seconds later, I felt something very light on my left foot. Then the voice was gone. I didn't open my eyes and finished the third exercise. After the exercise, I was curious and looked down to my feet. To my surprise, there were two little pink flowers placed on top of my left foot. I knew that the flowers weren’t really for me, but it was that the ones who left the flowers saw the beauty in Dafa. I had a great feeling come out from deep inside, and I thanked Teacher for saving each and every sentient being.

On another morning, after setting down my sitting mat and turning on the music, I went over to throw away a white paper bag that was littered on the grass. A lady came up to me, and put her hand lightly on my arm. She said, "I have to tell you, I see you practising every morning. Just watching you centres me. It is really inspiring watching you."

Actually, even my colleagues can tell if I’ve practised in the morning or not. When I’ve practised well, it really helps me in setting a positive attitude for the day.

I mentioned Chinese tourists earlier. Actually, many Chinese tour buses have stopped at Copley for picture taking.

One morning in October, a tour bus full of Chinese people arrived while I was practising. At first, my thought was, “Wouldn't it be even better if they saw that I was genuinely there to just practice?” I thought, “Probably practitioners have tried to give them materials before.” Then the words "don't miss any opportunity" came to mind.

I walked over to a young couple and offered to take a photo for them. "Hao, ah" they said. After I offered them a Chinese brochure and VCD, they smiled, looked at the truth clarifying materials and said, "Oh, you want more people to know about what's going on. Thank you!”

By now, most everyone was on the bus. I walked over to the bus and waited for the tour guide to finish answering questions for his clients. Then, I offered him the brochure and VCD. He said, "It's okay. Thank you. I see you here every weekend." We exchanged a short but pleasant conversation and parted with a warm handshake.

However, the story with the tour guide didn’t end there. Although he saw me practising every week, he really still had some misunderstandings about Falun Gong. Just like Teacher had answered in the recent U.S. Western Fa Conference, “Demonstrating the exercises can achieve a certain effect. Everything you do can achieve a certain positive effect. But, if you don't talk about the facts, don't get into the specifics and only do the exercises, then you won't be able to resolve the many perplexing issues in people's minds for the time being.”

So the next week, an opportunity came to rectify this. The tour guide came up to me as I was still doing the sitting meditation to say hello. Then he asked if what I was doing works. He said that sometimes, people from his tour ask what I am doing. He was only able to tell them that it was a kind of qigong. Thankfully, I had the chance to clarify the truth to him in more depth.

The Fall season had gone, the weather had become cooler and cooler, and even the tour buses had stopped coming for the winter season. But, still, I was determined to try my best to continue to practice. One Sunday morning, after doing the sitting meditation, I turned around to put on my shoes. As I turned around, I saw a pair of women’s gloves, and they weren’t mine. I took a close look, and realised that a lady had actually left her own pair of gloves for me. Actually, it wasn’t so cold that morning, but I was touched by her good heart. The gloves were actually quite big for my hands, but for the following couple of weeks, I wore them to accept her kindness.

One morning during the winter, with the wind-chill, it was about 0 degrees Fahrenheit. I was bundled up in my blue fleece hat, and long wool scarf that covered my nose and mouth, a long black coat, and thick gloves and decided to brave the cold. I practised for the hour, and it was a very peaceful practice. I got up and I hurried back to the car as it was really quite cold out. As I got into my car and was pulling out to head to work, I noticed the WBZ news van parked on the other side of the street. I pulled up in front of them to say hello, and as I walked up to the driver's window, the camera man rolled down his window. It was the same two camera men that I first met a few months ago. He put his hand out to my right cheek, and said, “You are courageous.” The camera man on the passenger side yelled over that he got me on camera again. I smiled, and thanked them sincerely. Actually, it felt warm during the whole hour that I meditated, and it was the ½ minute walk back to the car that I felt like I was going to become an icicle.

Interestingly, the next morning, a practitioner called me up. He said he could tell what I was wearing, but he had not left his house at all. He asked me to guess how he knew. So, naturally, I guessed that it was on the local channel from the news crew the morning before. It turned out that they ended up using the footage on the Weather Channel for the weekend.

On another occasion, just after a long weekend, as I was driving into Boston, I recognised a couple of girls from "City Year" waiting for the bus at the corner close to my house. City Year is a group of young adults who work in public schools to promote good will, and they also sometimes practice morning exercises outside. I pulled over and offered them a ride to Copley. They recognised me, and after they got into the car, one of the girls excitedly said, "I was just talking about you this weekend in New Hampshire." I was quite surprised to hear her say this. She said, "Everyday, I see you practising out there. You are really magnificent." I replied that they are also quite remarkable for practising outside in the cold. Then she said, "No way. We are complaining when we are out there, but you are so peaceful." I then took the chance to tell them about Dafa and the persecution. Actually, just as I am writing this experience sharing, I am realising how much Master was encouraging me... I remember how I was really feeling down for not being diligent enough… I mean, how many people actually use the word “magnificent.”

Mostly, I think that these stories are quite insignificant compared to what our fellow practitioners are experiencing in China, and the grand tasks and responsibilities that all Dafa disciples are shouldering. But, practising outside daily, from my understanding is also a way of validating the Fa. When people see that Dafa disciples are so determined to practice this Dafa, I believe they will understand that it comes from the power of Dafa.

So as the weather is getting nicer, hopefully, more of us can find a little time to practice outside and let people see Dafa disciples blossoming like flowers everywhere.

Here, I would also like to take the chance to express my sincere appreciation to every practitioner that has gone to Chinatown and the Boston Commons every week for the past few years. So many people I talk to know that you are there. Randomly speaking, even the consul general from the German consulate knows the truth because you are there.

And finally, I want to thank each and every one of you. It truly is a privilege to cultivate with you.

Thank you Master for such a precious opportunity.