what others have to say...

Part of the journey on being vegan is talking to others and listening to what they have to say about their diet choices.

http://www.happycow.net/famous_vegetarians.html

Generally, I find they fall into two distinct but overlapping groups; health and universal good.

I started in the first group. Though I'd long held that if I had to kill and butcher for my dinner, I'd likely not, it was health that made the decision for me. Probably the highest profile celebrity in this category is Bill Clinton. If you saw his speeches during the last US presidential election, you might have noted how healthy and vibrant he was. Then again, skeptics might argue that is the drop in stress. However, he himself would not agree with the skeptics as noted in this Huffington Post story.

The second group are driven by the recognition of animal suffering, which is a legitimate concern for those who are aware of factory farming processes and their environmental impact. If you haven't seen the Food Inc, it's worth a watch. Much of this is driven by a belief system, that all living beings deserve a life free of suffering. This is a cornerstone of Buddhist philosophy; the general inter-connectedness of all things.

The last six months I've been working on a renovation for a family with three children. The middle child, whom I'll call Bob (yeah not his real name) is twelve, As a younger child, he exhibited an aversion to eating meat. On reaching a point of being able to do his own research, he concluded he could no longer eat. Bon is driven by the idea that killing and eating creatures is inherently wrong. How does one look Bessie in the eye, care for her, then kill and eat her? Recently, his older and younger sister have taken up the vegetarion diet. When asked why, the answer is "Bob". Bob is a prime example of the 'respect for life' group. Recenlty making the cirtuit of the internet is this video of a three year old talking about food and animals. I don't know how it started, (kids that age are somewhat spontaneous and scripting doesn't work well,..) but the point is fairly clear.

There comes a point when these two groups overlap, sometimes completely. It is hard not to think about where your food comes from and develop compassion for all living things, especially those in the food chain. Of course, if you are all about animal rights and not eating living things, one is always thinking of what one eats and where it comes from. Making sure you get the right nutrition becomes a cornerstone of your life.