Hey! So was I – before I (finally) accepted the awful truth – again. One of the reasons I think I’m so good at this (if I do say so myself 😉 is that I always have in the back of my mind something to the effect of, “Yeah, that’s what I used to think.” As I look back on the arguments I had for not going vegan, I can hardly believe how – what? naive? blind? willfully obtuse? – I was. It’s too easy to forget this about my own history and sit in judgment of all the non-vegans out there. But, the truth is, I used every excuse in the book. Want to know why I went pescetarian instead of vegetarian back in the 90s? I didn’t want to give up sushi. It didn’t occur to me for a second that this was about as trivial a reason as reasons get. I never once thought of myself as privileged, self-centered, or careless with the lives of others. Nope, I was me. I was a good person doing my best in a complicated world. Which, is true too. I was a good person. But I was also kinda stupid. I can look back on my past self with compassion and understanding instead of disdain and this self-acceptance provides me with a source of empathy and understanding when people tell me they are happily vegetarian. My response typically includes all my admissions above followed by an apology for what I’m about to reveal. “I’m gonna ruin your day – I’m so sorry – It’s such a nice day too and I’m gonna mess it up for you. You ready?” Then I tell them how mama cows are forcibly impregnated (euphemism) every year until their bodies give out and then they are slaughtered anyway so, if you’re vegetarian because, “At least they don’t kill the animal,” (like I was), you might want to rethink that. I ask them to go home and watch a calf being taken away from her mom and try not to cry. I let them know that the female babies are used in the same way as their moms and the boys crated for veal. If they’re still standing, I let them know that boy chicks are immediately killed by shredder, suffocation, or electrocution because they are of no use to the egg industry. Finally, I share some good news. I never thought I’d go vegan. I thought vegans were extremist weirdos who didn’t know how to have fun. Even though it was hard for me to accept the ugly truth, I’m so glad I did. Life is just better now.
I’m happily vegetarian
