鍾雲美居士自小就接觸佛法。小時隨母常上寺廟禮佛、拜懺做功課。和堂姊
、二姊在一起玩時還曾發願將來一起出家修行。後來祖母、堂姊、二姊都如願出家。只有鍾居士碰到同修果義居士(即後來已往生的果義師)，「誤上賊船」，不但沒出家成，反而成了家，與佛緣漸疏。
一九八六年鍾居士五次開刀躺在病床上奄奄一息，所有抗生素都不起作用。二姊由台來美探病，當二姊將一串一
0八顆的念珠套上她手腕時，不禁使她清然淚下。想起兒時有一次上寺廟曾吵著要出家人手上的念珠，想不到二姊現在親自送念珠來，但自己命在垂危恐怕沒機會戴了。二姊又念佛又念大悲咒，梵音繚繞不止，觸動到她的心田深處，不禁熱淚奪眶而出。二姊又叫她安心而去
，若有必要二姊會照顧她的二個孩子。
一聽到這話，鍾居士求生的意志猛然強烈起來。心想：「二姊一向想出家，若讓我兩個孩子纏著出不了家，這不成我的罪過嗎？」這念頭激勵著她竭誠懇切地念佛。在念佛聲中病體終於恢復正常，連醫生們都驚奇不止，認為是奇蹟
。病癒後，夫婦倆到萬佛聖城去拜會宣 公上人。她的同修不久即皈依並受五戒，鍾居士卻仍踟躕不前，但在當時的果
義居士鼓勵下，她終於在一九九三年皈依了上人，法名果美。至於五戒也在同修的鼓勵下於一九九七年受戒。
一九九七年五月，果義師在念佛聲中安祥自在而走情形十分殊勝，留給鍾居
士的不是悲傷反而是欣慰。目前鍾居士在南灣區中文學校教授中文，並在金聖寺服務，生活過得平靜而充實。
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Upasika Yunmei Zhong has known Buddhism since she was
little. As a child she would go with her mother to worship
the Buddhas, bow in repentance, and attend ceremonies at the
temple. When she played with her cousin and sister, they
even made vows to leave home and cultivate together in the
future. Later they all left the home life but her. She was
pulled into marriage. Instead of renouncing the home-life,
she started a family and grew distant from Buddhism.
In 1986 Upasika Zhong went through five
operations. Her life hung by a thread as she lay on the
operating table. None of the antibiotics seemed to work. Her
sister came to visit her. When her sister slipped a strand
of 108 recitation beads around her wrist, she couldn't stop
her tears. Once when she was a child, they had gone to a
temple and she had begged for some recitation beads. Her
sister had now personally come to give her the beads. But
now her own life was in danger and perhaps she had no chance
to wear them. Her sister recited the Buddha's name and the
Great Compassion Mantra, whose pure sounds surrounded her
and moved her to tears. Her sister assured her that she
could depart in peace and that she would take care of her
two children.
When Upasika Zhong heard those words, her
will to live was bolstered. She thought, "My sister always
wanted to leave home. This will keep her from doing so, that
would be my offense." These thoughts prodded her to
sincerely recite the Buddha's name. As she recited, she
recovered her health, to the surprise of her doctor, who
thought it a miracle. After her recovery she and her husband
went to the City ofTen Thousand Buddhas to pay respects to
the Venerable Master Hua. Her husband soon took refuge and
received the five precepts, but she herself lagged behind.
She finally took refuge in 1993; the Ven. Master gave her
the name Guo Mei. She also took the five precepts in 1997.
In May 1997 her husband passed away in a
very peaceful state. Upasika Zhong was left not with a
feeling of sadness, but of joy. At present Upasika Zhong
teaches Chinese at a Chinese School in the South Bay and
volunteers at Gold Sage Monastery, leading a serene and
fulfilling life.
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