8 months ago I decided, on my own choice with no pressure, to quit meat and dairy out of my life. I'd watched a few documentaries on Netflix and many horrible videos on Youtube which shocked me.... but I still didn't change. I'd also seen a growing number of fit and healthy celebrities and a few friends that had gone vegan without any ill effects and even in most cases looked much better eating this way. This still didn't change me. I understand all the killing and torture the animals have to endure to put meat on our plate. I'm also fully aware of the massive damage to the planet that animal farming has. I could help but wonder why I still felt the need to eat animal.
What would it really take for me to finally do the right thing? I knew it must come from within.
No one can make you quit animal products any more than they can make you climb a mountain or run a marathon if you really don't want to. No one can give you all the scientific facts, show you videos and articles, guilt you, trick you, shame you or get downright angry at you, because these things don't help change at all. It really must be your choice to want to change. I've always been a naturally healthy eater so I had no problems with what I thought was going to be bland taste or even learning how to cook non-meat based meals. I look at food as fuel, it doesn't have to appeal to my taste buds all the time. Besides, I would add sauce or spices to every meat product, how different could it be with veggie products?
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Sometimes I have been at dinner and had no choice. Ok, I lied, I absolutely DID have a choice, but it was sometimes a choice between eating just plain potato chips or a salad or just choosing something with more substance to go with the energy I might require that night. This really is true too here in Australia, choosing between meat, meat, meat, meat, meat or a salad from the menu. Here we often have pubs and clubs that literally put meat in everything. Once I even asked for plain potato cakes.... they had bacon in them! This has happened around 4 times in the last 8 months and while I'm not proud of myself for giving in I haven't been too down about it. Sometimes it really is a choice of meat or go hungry.
Since the last moment of giving in around 3 months ago I have not eaten a single bite of meat and nor do I have any plans to if I can avoid it. I only drink alternative milks and don't see me ever going back to cow's milk or any animal based dairy. Cow boobies are for baby cows I say! I'll take one of the other 10 alternatives thanks! This change of eating is not easy at times and having a wife who enjoys meat and 2 kids who can be super picky when it comes eating anything, it's often a bit of rough divide to deal with. I'll talk to my wife, my Mum, my in-laws, my friends and total strangers about the change but many seem reluctant. I often look for lessons in life and in this I'd found one. Something completely unexpected and with such a profound level of teaching that I couldn't believe it myself when it first occurred to me.
I realised.....
"If I can quit meat, I can do ANYTHING!"
With the change in eating habist I'm exercising much more than I have for a while, I am dedicated more to growing as an artist, learning more about mindfulness, meditation, yoga, I'm cooking more (never really enjoyed it) I'm even ok doing the dishes afterward as they're so easy and to add to all this I am even posting more on Steemit as I feel very content with a bowl of marinated soy tofu and veggies while I sit here typing away. It has really change my whole view of the world as I would never have imagined. I now see that if I can overcome such a challenge as changing a lifetime of dietary habits then I am capable of this and so much more. Of course it has been no magic pill but has been a huge piece of the veggie pie that feels like it completes me and make me capable of searching for the best person I can be.
I would challenge anyone to try and do the same. Take on one of what most people (not all) consider one of the most difficult things in life to do. Many people do extremely challenging things in their lives but balk at any kind of food change, even if it is for the betterment of their health. I have literally had a friend say, "I would give up food completely for a week before I'd eat just vegetables!" All I see is someone too afraid to at least try a challenge. Embrace the vegetables and fruits and non-dairy foods for yourself, even just for a little amount of time to see if it changes your whole outlook on your own life, saving animal lives and helping to keep our planet healthy.