beane
01-06-2004, 09:00 PM
Well, I figure I can go ahead and give my "vegan story".
I became vegetarian about 5 and a half years ago. I had just finished my first year of college, and had just met a vegetarian for the first time. The idea of meat hadn't really sat well with me for a few years, but because of how I was raised, I just never questioned it. Up until meeting one, vegetarians seemed like fictional creatures like unicorns or something. After meeting a vegetarian, the whole concept became more real to me.
So, one week that summer, I noticed that I had gone the whole week without eating meat. It wasn't really deliberate, and I didn't even notice I was doing it until one day I sat down to a steak dinner, and was like, somethings different... So, while eating the steak, I did a lot of reflection. It dawned on me that I could probably live a perfectly happy life without eating meat, and if that is the case, I asked myself how I could justify taking the life of an animal for something unneccesary.
So, I decided I couldn't justify it. I finished my steak dinner, and decided to give vegetarianism a try, and never looked back. I didn't tell my family about it for a whole year, though. :) I knew I would get harrassed and grilled about by decision, and they wouldn't beleive I would stick with it. I felt it was an important decision, and I wanted to make sure I had my answers prepared before having to defend it. So I read a lot on the internet about vegetarianism, and that is also when I learned of veganism, although at first I didn't see the point in it. So, when I finally told my family, and the first response I got was "You'll never stick with it", I was thrilled to be able to say, "well, I have for a year now...".
So, anyway... After a couple years, I got curious enough about veganism, and read "Vegan: The New Ethics of Eating". Before I was done reading the book, I was vegan. It showed me that dairy and eggs are just as responsible for animal suffering as meat was. That was all I needed to know. I've now been vegan for 3 and a half years.
Since then, just by begin veg*an, I have noticed that I have inspired several people to try in, and a lot have stuck with it and inspired new veg*ans of their own. It really makes me take notice of the power of "social activism". Whether you realize it or not, you are making a huge difference just be being vegan. Hell, the first vegetarian I met never tried to convince me to be veg, but I am sure that I wouldn't have made the decision (at least, not when I did), had I never met her.
I became vegetarian about 5 and a half years ago. I had just finished my first year of college, and had just met a vegetarian for the first time. The idea of meat hadn't really sat well with me for a few years, but because of how I was raised, I just never questioned it. Up until meeting one, vegetarians seemed like fictional creatures like unicorns or something. After meeting a vegetarian, the whole concept became more real to me.
So, one week that summer, I noticed that I had gone the whole week without eating meat. It wasn't really deliberate, and I didn't even notice I was doing it until one day I sat down to a steak dinner, and was like, somethings different... So, while eating the steak, I did a lot of reflection. It dawned on me that I could probably live a perfectly happy life without eating meat, and if that is the case, I asked myself how I could justify taking the life of an animal for something unneccesary.
So, I decided I couldn't justify it. I finished my steak dinner, and decided to give vegetarianism a try, and never looked back. I didn't tell my family about it for a whole year, though. :) I knew I would get harrassed and grilled about by decision, and they wouldn't beleive I would stick with it. I felt it was an important decision, and I wanted to make sure I had my answers prepared before having to defend it. So I read a lot on the internet about vegetarianism, and that is also when I learned of veganism, although at first I didn't see the point in it. So, when I finally told my family, and the first response I got was "You'll never stick with it", I was thrilled to be able to say, "well, I have for a year now...".
So, anyway... After a couple years, I got curious enough about veganism, and read "Vegan: The New Ethics of Eating". Before I was done reading the book, I was vegan. It showed me that dairy and eggs are just as responsible for animal suffering as meat was. That was all I needed to know. I've now been vegan for 3 and a half years.
Since then, just by begin veg*an, I have noticed that I have inspired several people to try in, and a lot have stuck with it and inspired new veg*ans of their own. It really makes me take notice of the power of "social activism". Whether you realize it or not, you are making a huge difference just be being vegan. Hell, the first vegetarian I met never tried to convince me to be veg, but I am sure that I wouldn't have made the decision (at least, not when I did), had I never met her.