Being of Sicilian descent, food, and the eating of it, is every bit as essential to my existence as the very air I breathe. Of course, we need food to survive and, therefore, it IS essential. But I'm talking about something more than just mere sustenance here! Obsession would not be inaccurate when describing the feeling. In fact, in my family, food is sacred - literally. It is a gift from god and we are lucky to have it. There are those in the world who are not as fortunate to be as well fed as we are. My brother, sister, and I all heard the same admonishment from our parents that (and NO insult to my Asian friends - it was a term used at the time) children are starving in China. We were required to eat EVERYTHING on our plates before we were allowed to leave the table. To "waste" food was tantamount to sinning. This has left me with a finish everything on your plate mentality. Even today, my wife marvels at how I can leave a plate as barren as an arctic landscape! She says, "you don't have to eat EVERYTHING on your plate if you're full". My response is always the same: "oh, quite contrare' my dear, you don't understand. I must".
And we ate so well as kids. The have a fancy name now for the style of food we consumed almost daily; the so-called Mediterranean diet. Virtually everything was prepared fresh, with all natural ingredients. And, like most "peasant" cultures, our diet was totally omnivorous - we ate EVERYTHING, and, often, every bit of EVERYTHING. We had fruits, legumes, nuts, meat, pasta, vegetables, and bread. We ate the flesh, the brains, intestines, and eye balls! Nothing was wasted. I have written of family feasts that took my grandmother, mother, and aunts, days to prepare. It was truly a well balanced and, overall, extremely healthy diet. To this day, I attribute my good health to my exposure to good, quality food. So, with this in mind, it will be no easy task to attempt what I am now trying to do: become a vegetarian. Out of fear that my family will probably have me committed, I have not informed them yet. I'm waiting for the right moment (I fear possible histrionics). It's something that I've considered for years, but only now, am determined to see through.
So, a reasonable question to ask would be, "why the epiphany"? Well, there are many reasons. First, the quality of beef, pork, and chicken produced through so-called factory farming, is inferior. Techniques used to raise these animals are designed for rapid growth with the least amount of cost. In the case of cattle and pigs, this usually means feeding them corn, an unnatural food source that causes them to suffer with numerous ailments. This, in turn, leads the producers to use antibiotics to cure the cattle and hogs. The antibiotics become infused into the flesh of the cows and hogs, eventually passing on to whomever consumes the meat. Chickens are raised in filthy cages, stacked one next to another with virtually no space between them. The consequences of such deplorable and unsanitary conditions are also passed on to the consumer. The way that cattle are slaughtered can also contribute to unsanitary conditions which have caused recent, deadly outbreaks of e.coli contamination.
For these, and other health reasons, my wife has taken to purchasing only grass-fed beef and organically (free range) grown chickens to be consumed in our household. These animals are not only raised properly, they are slaughtered humanely. It is certainly a step in the right direction. But, now, for me, it's not enough. I need to do more. Even though I believe it is natural for humans to be omnivorous, I aspire to achieve a higher ideal, one that will eliminate as much cruelty as possible from my life.
The other night, while channel surfing for something suitable to watch in my hotel room, I came across a Peta video of animals, raised under factory farming conditions, being led to slaughter. Without going to great detail, let it suffice to say that I was shocked and appalled by what I saw. In fact, it was so disturbing that I couldn't watch more than a few seconds of it before I changed the channel. I had seen enough for the images to haunt me for days. And this is not the first video of its kind that I have seen. There have been many highlighting animal cruelty throughout the years. But, now, it was time for me to act. I needed to stop thinking about changing my habits and start living what I was thinking. Talk is easy and cheap. Action is more challenging. This move, for someone like me, will be much more difficult. I LOVE to eat and thoroughly enjoy a good rib eye steak or thick cut pork chop - ummn good! And I don't anthropomorphize animals. But it's time for me to stop thinking with my stomach and start feeling with my heart and soul. I will no longer be a part of industry that puts profits over humanity, cruelty over compassion, and ease over reason. I can no longer close my eyes and hope that the images will go away; that, perhaps, things will get better. I now realize that unless we change them, they never will.
I won't knock people who still consume factory raised meat. Supermarket meat products are accessible, mostly affordable, and necessary (to a degree) to support the enormous (and growing) human population. Most people do not have the means to reject such products. I also worry how I will replace the high quality protein that is still found in most meat products. However, I can no longer turn a blind eye to what I know in my heart is cruel and barbaric. I don't need to see anymore Peta videos. I've seen enough. It will take an effort, but ALL things of lasting value only come with making that effort. Besides, I'm not going to become a vegan. That's a little too extreme, even for me. I will eat more fish and continue eating all the other fresh food like fruits, vegetables, nuts, and dairy products that I have enjoyed my entire life. But, now, I think that I may even sleep a little better (ANOTHER unseen health benefit of not eating meat!) knowing that I have not contributed to the cruelty that seems so pervasive in our world today. It may be just a drop in the ocean, but it's MY drop and I can live with that. Now, if I can only find a way to explain this to my Sicilian family before next Thanksgiving . . .
