Rosemary
02-15-2003, 10:40 PM
I grew up on the Canadian Shield, surrounded by a forest and beaver pond. My mom would take us for walks and tell us about the different animals and plants, so I acquired a respect for nature.
Once when I was maybe around 7 years old, I started thinking about what meat is. I told my mom I didn't want to eat meat because it is made by hurting animals, and hurting animals is wrong. My mom told me that some animals (herbivores) can eat only plants, but that people are omnivores and need to eat both animals and plants.
(Note: as an adult I found out that my mom had had friends from India who were lifelong vegetarians!!! I asked her why she told me I needed to eat meat when she knew otherwise, and she denied telling me any such thing. In fact she does not remember this conversation at all, I guess because it was way more significant to me than to her).
Later on in high school, my biology teacher said that only meat contains all the essential amino acids, which is why it is impossible for people to be vegetarian. (And actually, I was secretly relieved to have an excuse because I hated vegetables!
When I was in university, and married to my first husband, I started brooding about eating meat again. Geoffrey (who was still a meat eater then!) said that if I really felt that way I should learn how to be a healthy vegetarian instead of moping about it.
So when I ended up in the science and medicine library looking for a way to procrastinate studying for my vector calculus exam, I started reading an outdated copy of France Moore Lappe's Diet for a Small Planet and decided I would gradually become vegetarian.
After a month of trying to do it gradually and getting nowhere at all, I visited the Experimental Farm in Ottawa to look at the animals and get some motivation. I especially remember looking into the cows' beautiful big eyes. I tried to imagine these animals going to the slaughterhouse, and from that moment on I never ate meat again.
About six months after that, a coworker on our company's discussion board recommended Diet for a New America by John Robbins. I was horrified to learn about factory farming -- I had no idea how bad things were. I realized I would have to become vegan, but I was still very concerned about the health aspects (I thought that Robbins info on the health advantages of veganism might be wishful thinking -- it seemed too good to be true that the ethical, health, and environmental issues would all fit together so well).
After a year of being vegan at home, lacto-veg away, I became vegan full time as my new year's resolution.
Once when I was maybe around 7 years old, I started thinking about what meat is. I told my mom I didn't want to eat meat because it is made by hurting animals, and hurting animals is wrong. My mom told me that some animals (herbivores) can eat only plants, but that people are omnivores and need to eat both animals and plants.
(Note: as an adult I found out that my mom had had friends from India who were lifelong vegetarians!!! I asked her why she told me I needed to eat meat when she knew otherwise, and she denied telling me any such thing. In fact she does not remember this conversation at all, I guess because it was way more significant to me than to her).
Later on in high school, my biology teacher said that only meat contains all the essential amino acids, which is why it is impossible for people to be vegetarian. (And actually, I was secretly relieved to have an excuse because I hated vegetables!
When I was in university, and married to my first husband, I started brooding about eating meat again. Geoffrey (who was still a meat eater then!) said that if I really felt that way I should learn how to be a healthy vegetarian instead of moping about it.
So when I ended up in the science and medicine library looking for a way to procrastinate studying for my vector calculus exam, I started reading an outdated copy of France Moore Lappe's Diet for a Small Planet and decided I would gradually become vegetarian.
After a month of trying to do it gradually and getting nowhere at all, I visited the Experimental Farm in Ottawa to look at the animals and get some motivation. I especially remember looking into the cows' beautiful big eyes. I tried to imagine these animals going to the slaughterhouse, and from that moment on I never ate meat again.
About six months after that, a coworker on our company's discussion board recommended Diet for a New America by John Robbins. I was horrified to learn about factory farming -- I had no idea how bad things were. I realized I would have to become vegan, but I was still very concerned about the health aspects (I thought that Robbins info on the health advantages of veganism might be wishful thinking -- it seemed too good to be true that the ethical, health, and environmental issues would all fit together so well).
After a year of being vegan at home, lacto-veg away, I became vegan full time as my new year's resolution.