Humbled & Proud

Sorry it’s been so long since I’ve written. I used to be a prolific blogger but my life isn’t exciting enough to blog about these days. However, I came across a news article today that inspired me to write this. It’s about how Smithfield Foods is mistreating their factory farmed pigs. The Humane Society took some undercover footage and you can imagine how that turned out.

I’ve been a vegetarian since I was 6 years old. I’ve even been a vegan for a few years (I still wish I was). With that said, I take pride in my diverse friendships with vegans, hunters, meat addicts and extremists of all shapes and sizes. I like to think of myself as a judgment free zone. However, I just want to say that seeing the photos of those suffering pigs reminded me of just how proud I am to be a vegetarian. Most of the time I hide being a vegetarian because I’ve found that people get defensive or uncomfortable–like I’m going to try to ‘turn them’ or that I will inconvenience them in some way–so this dietary pride is unfamiliar to me. So let me take this chance to revel in it by saying that I have not and will not give money to corporations that think it’s okay to abuse other living creatures just for some sandwich meat. I can look at those pictures and know that my consumer demand had no part in those inhumane farming practices and I never had to give up a thing (in fact, I gained overall better health and lower food bills). For most people, being meat free would be a difficult decision but it’s been an automatic, thoughtless action for me. The meat aisle just doesn’t exist and never did. It’s strange though because how many people can actually say that they are still living within the guidelines that they set for themselves when they were just an innocent little kid? It’s been almost 30 years since I ate my last McNugget and not much has really changed with me.