It has been six months since my last posting. Even though ‘life got busy’ is a super lame excuse for having gone off the map, now that the honeymoon and buying a house are behind me, I am back with my virtual pen and paper in hand.
My returning post is somewhat related to my blogging absence, and has to do with a question of what we can do to be ‘kinder eaters’. Or any other “adjective noun” combination for that matter – faster runners, better listeners, more active blogger, etc.
While in the process of research and self-education about the commercial farming industry, I was continually reminded that animals are sentient beings, that our choices to eat some animals and not others are at best hypocritical and irrational, etc, etc. And because of those constant reminders even when given a choice of humanely-raised cow or chicken, I opted for veggie or seafood option. I wasn’t craving meat and I was eating less of it, almost without trying. I was a more ‘kinder eater’ than after the six month hiatus.
So what creates change? How can I be a ‘kinder eater’ every day? The solution is the same one that’ll make me a faster runner. Awareness. An actionable plan. And finally practice.
- Awareness=education. Reading, listening, learning about benefits of a desired behavior keeps it in the forefront of my brain.
- An actionable plan. Meatless Mondays, no meat when going out, running 3 times a day , etc, etc, etc. All doable, actionable goals that raise chances of my success.
- Just do it. Over and over again. Until it becomes as natural as my brushing teeth or taking a shower. One of my favorite quotes goes: The thought manifests as the word. The word manifests as the deed. The deed develops into habit. And the habit hardens into character… (Buddha)
Or put less eloquently “the more you do, the more you do”. Even my husband, who is still getting on-board about the humane eating and still buys the regular, ‘ol deli turkey at Safeway, more and more often chooses vegetarian and has actually started to like eggplant. And hummus. Living proof that deeds do develop into habit.
My own plan for getting back to being a ‘kinder eater’ is to read more and do more. There are plenty of amazing website that educate not only about the cruelty of commercial farming but also benefits of vegetarian living as well as tons of delicious recipes to make it easier to Eat Kind. I am fortunate to live in California where there are increasingly more restaurants, grocers and brands that offer humanely-raised options and make “doing more” easy. So developing my deeds into habits and then character is up to me – for whatever ‘adjective noun’ I choose!