Coming to the US from China

Greetings respected Teacher!

Greetings fellow practitioners!

My name is Dou Dou, and I am nine years old. I have been rescued from the persecution occurring against those who practise Falun Gong in China. The title of my speech today is "Coming to the US from China."

I started to practise Falun Dafa along with my mum when I was two years old. At that time, mom always took me to practise the Falun Gong exercises with the other Falun Gong practitioners. Once I participated in a large-scale group practise with several thousand practitioners in 1998. On that day a reporter took a photo of me sitting down meditating. The photo was published in the Yang Cheng Evening Newspaper. At that time, all the reports in newspapers praised Falun Gong. I also lived in a very happy family. I knew that practitioners have to behave well and cultivate according to "Truth, Compassion, Forbearance."

All of a sudden one day, Jiang started persecuting Falun Gong. My mum was thrown in jail several times. Once the police called my dad and asked him to bring mum home. They also asked him to bring me along. We went to the police precinct and saw mom had wounds all over her body. I cried aloud and asked for my mom. Yet the police insisted that she had to reveal the locations where other Falun Dafa practitioners were hiding before they set her free. Mom told the police nothing. She did not want to betray other practitioners. I really wanted my mom to return home with us. The police ordered dad and me to leave. At midnight, the police called us back to the precinct. They intended to change my mom's mind if she saw me crying. I knew that for mom it was heartbreaking, yet she did not say a word to the police. In the end she was taken back to her cell.

At the day-care centre, my caretaker threatened me by saying: "If you continue to practise with your mum, you will be thrown into the mountains and let those big wild dogs to tear you apart." I was four years old, yet I was not scared because my Master was with me in my heart.

One day at the Tianhe Stadium in Guangzhou, there was a large-scale group practise with one thousand practitioners participating. I joined in with my mom and then the police arrested both of us. At the police precinct, we continued practising the five sets of Falun Gong exercises. I saw practitioners were locked inside a metal cage. Some were in small dark rooms. Both mom and I were detained for a few days.

One day, several dozen police officers broke into our home and took mom away by force. I asked the police: "Why don't you go and arrest pickpockets and leave my mom alone? My mom is a good person. Why do you keep her in jail?" Later, mom fled from jail and had to live a homeless life. Then she was kidnapped and thrown into a brainwashing centre. The police took my mom away from me. How more inhumane could they be? My mom wandered for a long time and dad and I had no knowledge of her well-being. When my mom called me for the first time from US, I cried so hard. My heart was so painful. I wondered when I would see her again.

Over the next three years, I often felt heartbroken without mom next to me. I could not sleep well at night. Whenever the moon came out I missed mom even more. I missed her when I saw other kids with their moms. Over the phone, mom kept reminding me that I should forever remember that I should be a good kid and act according to "Truth, Compassion and Forbearance." With the Fa (universal teachings, the principles taught in Falun Gong) in my mind, I passed the most difficult period of time.

One day dad took me to a temple. He gave me incense to burn and asked me to pray to the Buddha statue. Since I have my Master, I said to him: "Dad, there is a swallow and I want to play with it." Dad did not insist, so I passed the test. Another time I saw posters slandering Falun Dafa placed on a wall at my school, I pulled them down.

In those days no one would practise the exercises or study the Fa with me, so I forgot the movements quickly. I was afraid that Master would not care for me anymore. So I made a wish--if it rained on the next day, Master would care for me, otherwise He wouldn't. It actually rained on the next day. So I thought: "Master still cares for me."

Mom wanted to bring me out of China and so dad applied for a passport for me, yet the police would not issue the passport because mom was a Falun Gong practitioner. Mom wrote to the Guangzhou Police Bureau and the Provincial Governor. She also sent them various media reports about Falun Gong outside China. Additionally, some US Congress people and many Falun Dafa practitioners either wrote letters or made calls to China in order to get me out. I finally got the passport after all the help and endeavours. When we picked up the passport, my dad asked the police officer what changed their mind. The officer ran away immediately. It was shameful for the police to not have issued me the passport and they knew it. So he ran away.

When I just arrived in the US, I was excited, but I also felt bad. I was glad to see mom, but I could not let go the horrific memory of living without mom for the past three years. Soon after, though, I was happy again because I started meditating and studying the Fa, just as I had done prior to the persecution. Whenever I had a day off from school, I would go out to clarify the facts and distribute leaflets so that the persecution could be stopped and more young Dafa practitioners like me can be set free. I found that many people accepted leaflets from me with a big smile. One day an elderly American asked me to teach him the exercises after he read the leaflet. After he learnt the exercises, he gave me a banana as a reward. I offered him $1. He said that $1 could buy four bananas. So the banana was just a reward for me. Once when I was distributing leaflets in the subway, a lady was crying as she was reading the material. When she got off the subway, she carefully folded the leaflet and put it in her purse. I was happy to see so many Americans supporting Falun Dafa. I did not mind being tired at all when taking part in Falun Dafa related activities.

It was predestined that I came to this world and started to practise Falun Dafa. I must treasure the Fa and treasure the mercy of Master. I also need to thank the American people and everybody else who helped get me out of China. Without them I would not be as happy as I am today. I must strive forward in my cultivation.

Thank you Teacher!

Thank you everyone!