I have also been vegan for two months as of today.
Plus, I haven’t Diet Coke also two months ago last week.
I don’t say that in some self-righteous way. For the most,
people who aren’t vegetarian or vegan or who drink diet soda on a regular basis
are not impressed by it. I say it only because I am happy I’ve done it. It was
a personal challenge and I achieved it. And I feel a certain sense of personal
pride in doing so.
So, how has it been? To be blunt: it’s been incredible. I
have learned much this time around as a vegetarian. Twenty years ago, I went
vegetarian for the first time for five years. I didn’t cheat once in those five
years, but I also didn’t do it right. I ate lots of junk. I ate lots of cheese
and dairy. I didn’t eat healthy. And, in the end, I gave it up as easily I as
would throw away an old shirt.
This time around, I haven’t always eaten healthy, but I have
done much better. My health has not been this good in a very long time. And I
can really see and feel the results. Not because I am trying to or desperately
want to. They simply are happening for me, and I am grateful.
One thing has surprised me: I still get scolded by people. I
have to admit that at 44 years old,
an ordained priest, a published writer, a
person with lots of life-experience under my belt, someone who has been
indepenet for a very long time, being scolded at this time in my life is
sobering. And I honestly don’t know how to react to it.
So, when someone tells me, out of the blue: “This vegan diet
is not healthy for you,” I stiffen and bite my tongue. And I try not to respond
by simply noticing the meat they fork onto their plates and the gravy with
which they smother their mashed potatoes.
My resentment comes from the fact that I am amazed nobody scolded
me when my diet was unhealthy, when I was eating fast food from McDonald’s or
ice cream from Cold Stone Creamery or pizzas from Pizza Hut. When I was
diagnosed with cancer twelve years ago and my weight ballooned, did anyone
scold me for my eating habits then. Then, when I should have been scolded for
what I was eating.
All I can say in return is: I haven’t felt deprived or
lacking once in what I eat. It has been strangely natural for me. And once I
got into the habit of ignoring the scolding and bolder in asking servers to
make a dish of pasta with marinara instead of creamy sauce, or order a sandwich
without cheese or mayo, it was actually pretty easy.
Still, I’ve learned not be a jerk about vegetarianism/veganism.
Taking a note from Moby, I’ve learned to be almost apologetic about it when people
scold me or even when they ask me over to their homes or out to eat. Waving the
vegan flag or whipping out photos of suffering animals on factory farms or
slaughterhouses certainly does not win people over to the cause (which isn’tmy intention in the first place). In fact, that
vegan flag-waving and disturbing photos only drives people further and further away.
I do what I can, where I can, because it makes a difference
in my life. It makes a difference in my ethics, in my diet and in my health.
And I understand now how being vegetarian/vegan really is more than just an
issue of food. It is more than just a diet. It is a lifestyle. It is a way
living one’s life and it is a way of seeing the world around me differently.
I can also say there is something weirdly spiritual about
this way of eating. It does seem to fit so well into my faith life. As I
Christian and as priest, I feel a certain moral obligation about animals and
the suffering they endure for human consumption. There is a disconnect in our collective
intention blindness toward the suffering of other living being. And there is
something good and holy in compassionate living.
I am thankful for this year as a vegetarian. I am thankful
for these past two vegan months. It has been very good. The proof is in the
vegan pudding. I am feeling great—better than I have in a long time.
What more can I ask?
No comments:
Post a Comment