I Am a Vegetarian
Test Run...
I've tried to be vegetarian before. It was a huge inconvenience, especially since my mom cooked our meals most of the time, and I felt like I was wasting food. Now that I'm in college and depend on myself for finding my own food, cooking or otherwise, I think it might be time to try again.
So I'm making it my Lenten promise, 40 days without meat. I mean, I don't really believe in religion, but that's another story. I was raised Catholic, and I just like the idea of depriving yourself of a bad habit or vowing to do some good in the world for that period of time. It's just gotten to the point where I want to live a healthy and cruel-free lifestyle and get out from under the heel of the huge food and meat corporations.
It's really easy not to think about where the food comes from and how humane/natural the conditions are. It's not easy to think and do something about it, so I will be taking my first steps tomorrow, Ash Wednesday, to a healthier, and hopefully permanent lifestyle.
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So, it's been 3 weeks since I started this, and things are going very well. I found how little I really need to eat meat, and actually even wanted it. If I ever want it, I just have some soy "chicken" or a black bean burger. I'm really happy with this transition, and I plan on keeping to it :)
---------------------------It's now been 9 months since I had anything with meat in it. I guess I would be defined as ovo-lacto, as I still eat eggs, milk, and honey, but no meat or fish products. I have to say, looking back, I don't even know why I really became a vegetarian. It's always been out-of-sight out-of-mind with me, as I'd been a meat-eater for 19 years before this change, and really thought nothing of it. Do I disagree with the cruelty of factory farming and slaughterhouses? Yes. Do I think it's a healthier lifestyle? Yes, as long as you don't overdo anything, but that's true of a meat diet as well. Did I want to deny myself, a "Lenten" promise as I stated above. Possibly, but that's not completely accurate.
These are all good reasons to become a vegetarian, but the plain and simple fact is, I didn't really have a motives or reasons behind my change; I just became one, really without any reason. The only thing I can think of, that has a really strong ring of truth to me, is that I wanted an identity. I really don't have a lot of defining characteristics. I'm an exceedingly ordinary and average person. I guess by becoming a vegetarian, I have a label attached to me now, at least one defining characteristic. Might not be the best reason for becoming vegetarian, but I've learned a few things about myself. That I do have self-control. I've lost 10 pounds, not changing anything else in my life, just by cutting meat out. That's a pretty big deal for no significant change to my lifestyle. I've discovered that I really don't need meat to live on. Sure, it might have been a necessary source of protein and fat back then, but nowadays, there's plenty of that in the foods we eat, and we have infinitely more options. It really isn't necessary to have so much meat. So yeah, my reasons may have been not as noble as "killing animals is wrong," (which I do believe, don't get me wrong), but will I change back? Not a chance. I like the way the past 9 months have gone for me, and I look forward to many years without meat.
I've tried to be vegetarian before. It was a huge inconvenience, especially since my mom cooked our meals most of the time, and I felt like I was wasting food. Now that I'm in college and depend on myself for finding my own food, cooking or otherwise, I think it might be time to try again.
So I'm making it my Lenten promise, 40 days without meat. I mean, I don't really believe in religion, but that's another story. I was raised Catholic, and I just like the idea of depriving yourself of a bad habit or vowing to do some good in the world for that period of time. It's just gotten to the point where I want to live a healthy and cruel-free lifestyle and get out from under the heel of the huge food and meat corporations.
It's really easy not to think about where the food comes from and how humane/natural the conditions are. It's not easy to think and do something about it, so I will be taking my first steps tomorrow, Ash Wednesday, to a healthier, and hopefully permanent lifestyle.
---------------------------
So, it's been 3 weeks since I started this, and things are going very well. I found how little I really need to eat meat, and actually even wanted it. If I ever want it, I just have some soy "chicken" or a black bean burger. I'm really happy with this transition, and I plan on keeping to it :)
---------------------------It's now been 9 months since I had anything with meat in it. I guess I would be defined as ovo-lacto, as I still eat eggs, milk, and honey, but no meat or fish products. I have to say, looking back, I don't even know why I really became a vegetarian. It's always been out-of-sight out-of-mind with me, as I'd been a meat-eater for 19 years before this change, and really thought nothing of it. Do I disagree with the cruelty of factory farming and slaughterhouses? Yes. Do I think it's a healthier lifestyle? Yes, as long as you don't overdo anything, but that's true of a meat diet as well. Did I want to deny myself, a "Lenten" promise as I stated above. Possibly, but that's not completely accurate.
These are all good reasons to become a vegetarian, but the plain and simple fact is, I didn't really have a motives or reasons behind my change; I just became one, really without any reason. The only thing I can think of, that has a really strong ring of truth to me, is that I wanted an identity. I really don't have a lot of defining characteristics. I'm an exceedingly ordinary and average person. I guess by becoming a vegetarian, I have a label attached to me now, at least one defining characteristic. Might not be the best reason for becoming vegetarian, but I've learned a few things about myself. That I do have self-control. I've lost 10 pounds, not changing anything else in my life, just by cutting meat out. That's a pretty big deal for no significant change to my lifestyle. I've discovered that I really don't need meat to live on. Sure, it might have been a necessary source of protein and fat back then, but nowadays, there's plenty of that in the foods we eat, and we have infinitely more options. It really isn't necessary to have so much meat. So yeah, my reasons may have been not as noble as "killing animals is wrong," (which I do believe, don't get me wrong), but will I change back? Not a chance. I like the way the past 9 months have gone for me, and I look forward to many years without meat.
31-35, M