In the February Living Buddhism magazine there is an article about Faith for a Harmonious Family with a section written by our new National Women's Division Leader Akemi Bailey-Haynie.
She said that when she was 17, she and her sister were working on activities in 1980 to welcome President Ikeda to Chicago for the 'Capture the Spirit Festival." Their father showed up drunk, clinging to the wall, and screaming at her and her sister. The two of them were crying in embarrassment and despair.
"When we spoke to a senior in faith, he encouraged us to use prayer to transform how we felt about our father. It was perhaps our first lesson in the "oneness of life and its environment.
"That night, my sister and I prayed sincerely about this point and were able to summon our appreciation for even having a father. As if responding to the transformation that occurred in our lives, the next morning we found our father sitting at the kitchen table, cleanly shaven and wearing a suit, reading the newspaper. We could not believe our eyes! He signed up to attend Alcoholics Anonymous that day, and everything began to change from there.
"It took years of practice for me to realize that, because my father terrorized our home, he guaranteed our absolute happiness. He taught me that I could transform anything with faith."
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