VEGAN VAMPIRE DIARIES — WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 25, 2020
Cooking Simple Plant Food for Myself Gets Lonely, But I Celebrate Why
To make things fun, for one day I only used green-colored ingredients
On Wednesday, everything I ate was “verdant-hued.” Sorry, for those who don’t speak highfalutin poet, I mean green!
Bring on my morning Especially Green Smoothie:
- Green grapes
- Granny Smith apples
- Romaine lettuce
For dinner, I had Everything Green in a Bowl. Yes, I’m so creative with names!
It was actually only 8 things, not every thing:
1. Green peas. 2. Green beans. 3. Brussels sprouts. 4. Broccoli. 5. Romaine lettuce. 6. Green peppers. 7. Scallions. 8. Mashed avocado.
Most of it I chopped into a pot to boil. Only the peas and green beans came canned, catering to my laze. As the mixture cooled, I mashed on the aguacate as you’d say it in Spanish.
Thrilling flavor! It was so delicious just like that. When you isolate colors, you end up with strong taste combinations that take your tongue by surprise…
But my family doesn’t partake much in my simple plant food recipes. For now, what I cook is just for me… and, I would like to think, for animals and humanity.
Being a vegan vampire (or any different eater) can get lonely, but remember why you do it
I blog to be accountable. I seek to live less selfishly and care for others more.
It’s easier to feel in touch with Heart when I write articles for people, help family, or in the past when I worked customer-facing jobs.
Wednesday felt disappointing at first. All that grocery shopping and food prep (I cooked for the whole weekend) was to feel my mouth only.
Then I realized, maybe I just need to remember my why.
People who live different are often doing what they believe has a good world impact. They seem aloof from their immediate community, yet they are trying to express big love.
If I ate the same as family, it could enhance the communal feel. However, I would hurt my health this way. We each depend on our vitality to be sweet to those around us.
Rights of animals was my first reason for going veg, then vegan as a teenager. Now that I know the humanitarian reasons, here are some of my why's for continuing through COVID-19:
- Voting no on slaughterhouses. This also applies to birds and cows used for eggs/dairy. I don’t want humans to have to do slaughterhouse work either, since killing animals all day is traumatic.
- Combat climate change and help the environment.
- Conserve resources like land, water, and crops to supply our large human population.
- Prevent pandemics. United Nations in 2013 said 70% of diseases we got in recent decades had been from handling animals.
- Keep my heart open to all beings. A study suggested veg*ns averaged stronger empathy to suffering in both humans and animals.
I’m no saint. It’s hard to know all the effects of my modern consumer life. That’s why I love that skipping animal products has layers of benefits. It’s nice I could make a far-reaching difference with a single choice I made at 17.
Plant-based cuts the risk of heart disease and mortality, yet many plant eaters cook fancier. Why do I prep such simple foods, without even salt, oil, or sugar? I just learned from trial and error what seemed to minimize my symptoms.
I joke I’m a vegan vampire because I can’t stand garlic. Plus, I live for cherries and watermelon... so red and succulent. 🧛♀️
Someday, this plant kook will find ways to share animal-free passions with those around her again.
For today, she will celebrate what she does alone.
You might be taking care of just yourself sometimes, but keep feeling that big love in your heart for the whole world that you want to be happy.
