My Vegetarian Journey

I decided to start out this year trying out being a vegetarian.  A full 30 days of no meat.  And so far it's been quite easy.  

A few different things called me to do this.  Firstly, I've thought of making this change for a few years now and often when given the choice of this meal or that, I nearly always pick the veggie version.  I'm not sure if it's my subconscious telling me to do so, or if my tastebuds simply prefer it.   We've always joked that I have the teeth of a herbivore and I can't chew meat the same way other people can, but hey! maybe that's my body trying to tell me something! And secondly, I'm an animal lover.  A perfect example is the love I have for our dog Kea, shes an animal family member.  I'm aware of the animals most commonly used within the food industry and have gotten into many research spirals where I end up so sad and crying in anger because of how they are treated, let alone how they die. And I can simply no longer be a part of that.  So that being said, my choice to do this is really at a moral level.

After making this decision and being a few days in, then learning of the horrific fires taking place in Australia, I truly felt like my decision was coming at the right time.  Seeing the images of all the animals like koala bears, kangaroos and wombats, drinking water from firefighters and losing their trees that they call home, I was heartbroken for them.  The number that kept coming up in the news was half a billion animals have died due to these fires. And I felt that this tiny change I'm making in my life to not eat animals compared to the number of animals that the planet lost in this one instance might in some minuscule way help there to be balance again one day.  I know I'm only one person, and I'm sure I'm imperfectly attempting to do this, as well as I know I'm not a full-fledge vegan, but I feel like I'm contributing to saving animals.  

Do I plan to become vegan? I've had this question asked a few times now, and to be honest, I'm not sure.  At this point, I'm not after a fixed label, and may never need one.  I do already know that after this "trial" month of sorts, I'll still have a lot of exploring to do, but am happy with the start of my vegetarian journey.

If anyone has any advice, or experiences of their own to share, send me a dm on our instagram to continue the conversation!  As well as, any go-to recipes or quick meals, or brands to look out for at the grocery store for veggie or vegan options, I'd love to hear those too! @elizabethovintage

I would like to add that these are my words and my journey.  I'm not perfect, and am doing my best and what feels good for me. We all make our own choices and no judgment here on how you choose to make your choices.  This is a positive space.