Incremental Change

1411: 

I like to think I am at peace with pigs and cows.  Whenever I see them or come into casual contact with them, I might feel ashamed on behalf of my fellow humans but personally I feel no other embarrassment.  When I see a beautiful hen pecking on the ground I don’t any longer feel guilty.  If it's in a cage I feel impotent but not culpable.

         

Of course, the whole horrible practice of farming animals might make me feel angry, as it might that people have animals on their dinner plates, but what can I do?  I can’t dismiss the whole of humanity or feel angry at all my friends, at kids, at parents, at my neighbours.  That wouldn't help anyone, least of all the animals concerned.  But I can suggest they go cruelty-free shopping, because for there to be any change of heart, this is where it starts.

         

By way of incremental change, I would like to be able to suggest they make one small gesture each day, away from using animal produce.  But how do I ever suggest this?  It might not be enough merely to lead by example.  If I lead a cruelty-free life and want others to do the same, then I need to sell the idea, by making it seem like an attractive thing to do.  I don't need to deliver a lecture.  Somehow, I do need to be able to touch people’s hearts and appeal to their 'higher' instincts.  If they are willing to make a start, I would need to let them feel the change within themselves as they go along, until they see for themselves that this new habit is ultimately attractive on its own account.

         

I don’t need to push it, just talk through the issues without coming on too strong or going on about it too long.  Our job, as vegans, isn’t to make up other people's minds for them but to let them come to their own conclusions.