Sticking to your values and encouraging others to do the same
When I was six years old, my mom explained to me what meat is. I proclaimed then and there that I was going to be a vegetarian forever. 14 years later I haven’t eaten meat since and don’t plan on it anytime soon. Vegetarianism has been a part of my identity since then. When I moved to Israel, the first thing I learned to say after “hi, how are you” was “I’m a vegetarian” or “אני צמחונית.” Vegetarianism is a much bigger thing now than it was in 2006. Most of my friends didn’t get it and my friends’ parents really didn’t get it. My parents would send me for dinners and sleepovers with pre-made food or a box of mac and cheese if they were short of time. My mom tells stories of other moms saying she should just make my food with chicken broth or crumbled beef without telling me or I wouldn’t get enough protein. But my mom didn’t do that, she encouraged me to stick to my values and supported me in doing so.
When I was 13, I started cooking for myself more when my parents weren’t home, so they enrolled me in a nutrition class at the library. I could design my own lifestyle and eating habits, but I was going to learn about how to do that healthfully. I learned about protein, healthy fats, sugars, and how to maintain a healthy balanced diet without eating animals. This was one of the first times I had to put my learning to the test right away, outside of the classroom, and it sparked a greater interest in learning new things. It was difficult at first to find more than pasta that I was really interested in, but as time went on, I really found that I like healthy eating and creating balanced recipes. I’ve gotten pretty good at healthy vegetarian cooking over the years thanks to that commitment.
It’s not that there haven’t been reasons or temptations to break over the years. Giving up my grandma’s non-vegetarian lasagna was the hardest. Until recently, travelling and restaurants weren’t always easy. During my freshman year of college, the dining hall often had little I could eat other than cheese pizza and the salad bar. But, I didn’t give up. Even my dad, an avid meat eater who teases me constantly, has told me he’s proud of the commitment I made and that I’ve stuck with it. And to be honest, staying with something you believe in no matter how difficult it might seem at the get-go, once you get started, it isn’t that hard.
I made that commitment at a young age for myself, and the earth I live on, but not for anyone else. It’s one of the first real life impacting decisions that I ever made, and it’s part of my who I am. I am someone who sticks to my values in all facets of my life, be it diet, school, or anything else. It was that first commitment to myself and the living things I care about that set me up to be the value focused person I am today. As much as my friends tease me for my avid consumption of kale, I’m proud of myself for sticking with it and incorporating an important value into my everyday life for such a long time.
For anyone who’s interested in vegetarianism and cooking below are some links to a few of my favorite healthy Veg friendly recipes. And for anyone aspiring to make the change I suggest checking out cookbooks from the Moosewood Restaurant.
