This weekend, I've confronted life and death. A memorial service for a wonderful lady on Friday evening, and then a baby shower for a good friend on Saturday had me reflecting on the circle of life. Then I realized that we make choices every day to either support life or death with the foods that we eat and products we use.
Eating foods with animal products is choosing death. Maybe not for the person doing the eating, but at least for the animal that gave up its life for that meal. While the food may taste delicious, it wasn't possible without death. A plant-based diet, on the other hand, is about choosing life. It's about choosing to live a healthier, more vibrant life based on the bounty of living things grown from the ground. It's about celebrating the energy that flows through your body via these foods that don't clog your arteries or put free radicals into your cells (and that often do the opposite). It's about saving the environment, one meal at a time, because you aren't participating in consumption of animals that produce methane and are responsible for half the greenhouse gasses. And it's about saying no to the slaughter of innocent animals (198 fewer animals per year will die on average, when you switch to a vegan diet).
The difference is stark, when you think about it. And don't you want to side with healthy, life-affirming foods and personal products instead of those that come from death? I know I do.
Sunday, September 18, 2011
Wednesday, September 7, 2011
Where have all the heroes gone?
I've been thinking a lot about heroes lately. In a time when behaving badly seems to be the norm, who do we have to look up to? Who inspires us to be better? Not celebrities or politicians, and certainly not captains of industry.
In past eras, we've looked to these sectors to find our heroes - people we admired and wanted to emulate. Sadly, heroes seem to be sorely lacking in these times of greed, self-centeredness and shock value. But they aren't really. Our heroes aren't people who are in the news and tabloids every day. If you dig a little deeper, you'll see quiet heroes on the front lines making a difference.
Kathy Freston was my first hero in the vegan world - in her positive, non-judgemental way, she showed me why my conscience would no longer allow me to eat fish or dairy (I was already a "pescatarian"). Drs. T. Colin Campbell and Caldwell Esselstyn are taking a scientific and medical approach to educating the public about the health benefits of a plant-based diet. People like Kris Carr, Colleen Patrick-Goudreau, the "Skinny Bitch" ladies and a host of others are writing and blogging about veganism.
Then there are the heroes in the animal welfare world. Gene Bauer of Farm Sanctuary is king among my heroes for all he does for exploited animals in the factory farming world, and the founders and volunteers at The Gentle Barn in Santa Clarita, CA renew my belief in the goodness of people. Wayne Pacelle of the Humane Society and Jane Goodall, who is still fighting for the rights of chimps are also people to be emulated and admired.
It's true that the mainstream media carries almost nothing but stories of people behaving badly. But if you look a little deeper and refocus your vision, you'll see the frontlines of everyday heroes making a difference for the animals and all of us.
In past eras, we've looked to these sectors to find our heroes - people we admired and wanted to emulate. Sadly, heroes seem to be sorely lacking in these times of greed, self-centeredness and shock value. But they aren't really. Our heroes aren't people who are in the news and tabloids every day. If you dig a little deeper, you'll see quiet heroes on the front lines making a difference.
Kathy Freston was my first hero in the vegan world - in her positive, non-judgemental way, she showed me why my conscience would no longer allow me to eat fish or dairy (I was already a "pescatarian"). Drs. T. Colin Campbell and Caldwell Esselstyn are taking a scientific and medical approach to educating the public about the health benefits of a plant-based diet. People like Kris Carr, Colleen Patrick-Goudreau, the "Skinny Bitch" ladies and a host of others are writing and blogging about veganism.
Then there are the heroes in the animal welfare world. Gene Bauer of Farm Sanctuary is king among my heroes for all he does for exploited animals in the factory farming world, and the founders and volunteers at The Gentle Barn in Santa Clarita, CA renew my belief in the goodness of people. Wayne Pacelle of the Humane Society and Jane Goodall, who is still fighting for the rights of chimps are also people to be emulated and admired.
It's true that the mainstream media carries almost nothing but stories of people behaving badly. But if you look a little deeper and refocus your vision, you'll see the frontlines of everyday heroes making a difference for the animals and all of us.
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