(Minghui.org) The 2017 desk calendar designed by Minghui was a vivid illustration of traditional Chinese culture, seeking to awaken people's conscience and enlighten them to the true meaning of life. In order to bring good fortune and blessings to people in our area, local Dafa practitioners decided to mass produce the desk calendar and distribute it for free.
The project required a lot of manpower, money, time, and effort, and only six of us were directly involved—two in our 50s, two in our 60s, and two our 70s. But we all had a strong desire to tell people about Dafa and deliver good fortune to all, so we got started right away without thinking too much about the difficulties.
Quite a few steps were involved, including purchasing consumables such as ink and paper, printing, cutting and binding, packaging, transporting, and distribution. Each step required careful attention to detail and quality.
The biggest hurdle when it came to the consumables was the cost. After careful consideration, we decided that we would use glossy paper, a spiral binding rod, and a frame for each calendar. Including the ink, the total cost was about four yuan a piece.
When they heard about the project, many local practitioners volunteered to pool their fund to help, ranging from 200, to 2,000, to 30,000 yuan. Because most of us have been persecuted to varying degrees, we don't have much. But we saved, penny by penny, with one goal in mind: to validate the Fa and save more people.
The printing paper was very heavy, but the practitioner in his 70s carried box after box and transported them on an electric tricycle from the factory miles away. The cold and thick smog in Beijing did not deter him a bit.
The frames were even heavier and had to be carried upstairs. The practitioner assigned to the job was in his 60s and had difficulty getting them upstairs, but he finished everything without a word of complaint.
Printing was the key step in the whole process. It took about 30 minutes to print one calendar, so one printer could complete three dozen a day, barring any printer malfunctions. That meant we needed many practitioners to help.
We slept only about 3 hours a day and worked around the clock. Some of us had to go to work during the day, but returned right after work. Some senior practitioners had never used a computer in their whole lives, but when they saw how long it was taking, they did not hesitate to purchase their own laptops and printers.
They started by learning computer basics, such as booting up and shutting down, and using a mouse. They wrote down all the steps to follow. Within a month, the senior practitioners could proficiently operate multiple computers that were connected to multiple printers.
Every day we would get up at 3 o'clock to do the exercises, send righteous thoughts, and then start printing. One of our spouses, who was not a practitioner himself, was very supportive of the project. He volunteered his home for the group to use, prepared meals for us, and even helped bind and transport the calendars.
Cutting and binding, which was very time consuming and required a lot of patience, came next. In order to complete the task quickly, we set up a daily quota for ourselves and would not go home at night until we met the quota. After making and packaging the calendars, we transported them to our homes. Each box contained about 70 calendars. It wasn't easy for me to carry a dozen boxes on a tricycle, but I always imagined myself as a divine being with tremendous strength. I suddenly was able to carry the boxes with relative ease.
We immediately started distributing the calendars by carrying them in tote bags and handing them out on the streets in spite of the cold and potential danger if the police caught us. We let go of the attachment to self, fear, and human notions to step forward and deliver hope and blessings to people.
When people received the calendars, the smiles on their faces showed us the joy in their hearts. Indeed, they must have a strong predestined relationship with Dafa in order to obtain a copy of the calendar hand-made by Dafa practitioners. If they could truly understand the stories told on each page of the calendar, they would definitely enjoy a bright future.
In today's society, people value money and personal gain more than anything, and rarely can they find the act of selfless giving. Only the pure hearts of Dafa practitioners can touch people and change their minds. One night a practitioner took a box of calendars home. Because the box was too heavy for her to carry all the way home and there was no public transit nearby, she decided to get a taxi. When she approached a cab parked near the curb, the driver told her that he was waiting for someone and could not pick her up. As she retreated to the curb, a luxury sedan stopped in front of her.
“Twenty yuan and I will take you anywhere,” said the driver. She got in the car without thinking too much about it. When the car got to her home, she handed the driver 30 yuan and a Dafa amulet. The driver refused the money and said, “I just wanted to give you a hand. I will keep the amulet for sure but won't accept your money.” The practitioner was moved by his kind heart and the understanding and support of a stranger.
In the end, we made and distributed 10,000 desk calendars, which was truly beyond what we ever could have imagined. Everything was arranged by Master. As practitioners, we must cooperate with each other, let go of attachments and human notions, and achieve a more power effect in saving sentient beings.
