vegetarian

20 Years As A Vegetarian

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This month I celebrate 20 years of being meat free. I don’t remember the exact date but I had just got back from driving down to Florida with friends for spring break in April 1996. I was midway through a burger and couldn’t stop thinking about all the transport trucks we passed on our road trip along the way that were carrying livestock. It was my my much-needed “ah-ha” moment.

Though I can’t help but think I connected the dots years earlier as a little girl in Nigeria, raised on the goats I played with. As a result it was a constant struggle to get me to eat meat. Had my parents known any different — that there were other ways to get protein — perhaps they would have provided me with alternatives. But they didn’t.

I don’t blame them for this. The same way I hope my children won’t point fingers at me for raising them as vegetarians.

kafka_quote_exuma_pigs

This is a legit photo of a family of pigs on Exuma Island in the Bahamas, and I added the Kafka quote. Rumored to have been brought to Exuma hundreds of years ago by explorers, or to have swam to shore following a shipwreck enroute to slaughter, the origin of the islands’ swimming pigs is pretty much unknown. What is certain is how incredibly lucky they are.

I ever had much desire to go to the Bahamas being that their tourist industry is known for importing captive dolphins. But I’m bucket-listing swimming with pigs for sure!

Mylostone – First Farm

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This Mylostone is a particularly personal one for me. As a vegetarian, it meant a lot to me to be able to introduce my son Mylo to farm animals. I apologize ahead of time if what I’m about to write offends you, but since becoming a vegetarian, I’ve always wondered how parents take their children to farms to feed and admire the cows, chickens and goats to then turn around and feed those same animals to them for dinner. My own folks included.

I’ve always intended to write in more detail about our decision to raise our children vegetarian but have sadly not gotten around to that post, (and others for that matter). My husband Jason is only vegetarian 75% of the time, but I am immensely grateful that I have his full support in bringing up Mylo as one. As he said to my parents when we explained to them of our wishes, “How can you really argue with a lifestyle that is healthy, environmentally responsible and compassionate.”

So you could imagine my delight at seeing my son hand-feed this bully billy goat a carrot in my hometown of Northport, NY — at the same farm I grew up visiting no less!