1596:
Owing to human-made problems,
it's as if there is a cloud-bank of fear hanging over our heads, warning us
that we're on the brink of having to start all over again. It's as if the
things we've been used to are no longer around; the essential services and
commodities we took for granted, we can no longer
find - we now have to learn to see them as non-essentials. In this world
of 'shortages', however much we’re going to have to suffer, we'll be better prepared
if only because we are more aware of things, which before were more sub-conscious.
That awareness has shown us one big thing, that human brilliance isn't
all-positive. There's a balance to be struck between intellect and conscience. Across
the raging river of confusion, eco-thinking and living more sustainably is one
stepping stone, and being vegan is another. The more people are able to see clearly,
the more they notice where there's a need, and the more they want to help. Working
for the greater good certainly sits well with our conscience and eases the
confusion.
One important faculty humans
have is an ability to foresee possible outcomes and drive towards them. Having
goals makes the work we do more purposeful and enjoyable, even if it's still
hard work. Working with purpose means not feeling resentful about having to do
it. Working with an altruistic purpose is its own pleasure, not for my benefit but
for the benefit of future generations.
But
once we aren't afraid of experimenting with altruism, then in theory all of us
(children, parents, grandparents or equivalents) can find ourselves pointing in
the same direction. When the experimenting starts at home, no one outside the
home is going to notice what we do. If 'going vegan' is one such experiment,
you can be sure no one outside will be interested in that. And yet we find
ourselves 'doing' it, and hoping for some break-through. The goal is largely
selfless and not at all confused - we want animals liberated, and we want to
see signs that it is beginning to happen.
If
there are no evident signs that things are changing, if the animal-killing
industry is thriving and people seem to accept the status quo, we might feel we
are failing. Which is why vegans need support and recognition, if only to
confirm that we're really making headway and that the World is changing because
of it.
As
sad as the situation is, in regard to using animals, that the practice is firmly
entrenched, and some say it's been entrenched for over two million years, we're
trying to turn that around. It is almost certainly the most entrenched of all
human behaviour. It's both sad and ugly, and for many of us today, we'd do
anything to un-entrench conventional eating habits.
We
want a world where we humans no longer think
it appropriate to use animals, for anything. This isn't a popular view, for
obvious reasons. Vegans are not being applauded for their pioneering lifestyle
or boycott. The opposite is true in fact, where vegans are ridiculed and where family
rifts occur, where friends go their separate ways and where relationships break
up because of the difference in attitude towards animals and the eating and
wearing of them. Many vegans do lose family and friends and have to become solo
fliers. And eventually they get used to it and tell others, "If there's no
support, get over it".
We know
repairs must go ahead, whether people like it or not, even when they are afraid
of having to 'start again'. The fear is that each individual will become so
weighed down by guilt and by the weight of their own stomachs, that it will be
impossible for them to make the essential decision to change. If it goes the
other way, if humans are on the way to retrieving themselves, then it's good to
know that we are very adaptable. When change is in the wind, humans change and
adapt to that change. Perhaps that's only possible because we humans are
conscious of the need for repair, even though it might be outside our
own immediate interests. We can see why it must be done, and by being aware of
the bigger picture, we are always being drawn to the need to work together towards
levelling the playing field, so that all interests are being taken into account,
and not only the interests of the privileged. By taking that egalitarian initiative,
many people do unite and make no fuss about pulling together, because they can
feel the enormous power of people who are thoroughly involved. There's no power
like that, in people who are inspired by the enjoyment to be had from working
for the greater good. Once it's been experienced, it makes the individual's personal
ambitions look somewhat outdated and even ridiculous.
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