1803:
In my own case, I saw the
advantages of a plant based diet but feared taking the first step, and for good
reason. You don’t have to be Einstein to see where all this leads to. The
nobility of the idea was exciting in theory, but the practical implications
were scary. I could see all the weaponry I was going to have to use, to get me
by. I saw the difficulty of it and started to build my defences.
But as it happened, going
vegan was almost like falling in love! Quite a surprise. It was mainly to do
with my own capability that had acted to put me off. I hadn't foreseen the
cloud passing in front of the sun and then passing on. I hadn't known there'd
be a 'eureka' moment, a forming of my
own brand of truth - seeing quite clearly that there was no need
to make any use of animals. It’s like living on a main road and getting used to
the fumes, not realising that there are other places where fresh air actually
exists; liberating animals is simply a way of strengthening ourselves. And
following from that, I now had a purpose which fitted me like a glove. It
suited my inner personality just as it suits most people's deeper temperaments.
It made sense to go beyond myself towards ‘the other’. For me, this was an
exciting theory, challenging me to commit to something bigger than myself.
I made a list of everything I
could think of which I’d no longer be using - I’d be avoiding hundreds of
products I was attracted to. I’d be either having to do without them or having
to find replacements for them. And when I couldn't find anything suitable,
facing the fact that I wouldn’t give in to temptation. A relatively small price
to pay to atone for the wrongs of my species done to other species. This would
be an awakening of my empathy for ‘the other’.
My life was going to be
difficult, but nothing compared to what farm animals are going through. By
comparison, my ‘lifestyle difficulties’ would pale into insignificance, so a
little sacrifice on my part would be hardly worth a mention.
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