It hurt my heart to turn down some jerk chicken at a Jamaican cook-up the other day. Almost 5 months vegetarian! Had no idea this was actually going to happen over here.
It all started Christmas 2015 when I watched a documentary called Cowspiracy. So many people think (and I thought) that the only reason to go vegetarian/vegan is for ethical or health reasons. But every time I ate chicken, pigs, cows, and the eggs, milk and cheese that come from them, I was supporting the biggest contributor to climate change and global warming. It’s all the water, land and energy that firstly go into growing food for them, and then raising enough of them to feed us milk, butter, eggs, sausage and bacon for breakfast, then more meat and dairy for lunch and dinner. But too much money is in it. So governments and big corporations continue to hide it from us. I stopped eating meat at home in Manchester, but continued to have that juicy beef burger on my girly lunch dates at TGI Fridays.
When I came to Singapore, I started eating more meat than I had in a long time. I told myself I couldn’t go vegetarian on exchange. I had to try all the local food during my travels to get the full experience. I remember starting to read more articles about the issue, then closing them mid-sentence when the facts started to hit me hard (ignorance is really bliss). My learning about the environmental impact branched off into its effect on our bodies and of course, animal cruelty (the one I was running away from because I did not want to become the typical “hippie” vegan).
It took a lot of will power. Eating meat was such a big part of my culture back home and how I socialised everyday. But learning more is really what made the difference. I started to feel naturally turned off, rather than having to force myself. I gave into social pressures for a couple more weeks, and then made the full commitment the day I did this interview. (goo.gl/95jm1Y)
Okay, I know ‘climate change’ and ‘global warming’ may just seem like technical terms. Like things that happen as a part of Earth’s natural cycle that we have little control over. But that’s so far from the truth. We contribute to the problem every single day. We’ve become so detached from nature and dumbed down by the media that we don’t understand the role that other living things play in our survival.
Now, I won’t bore you with any more facts. This post was meant to be food for thought 🙂 Just a reminder to have an open mind and compassionate heart. I’m still ignorant to so much and am still battling with my selfish human ways.