I haven't given up something for Lent in years, literally. The last time I can recall was in high school and that was a pretty half-assed attempt at giving up pop. We were always told that if you could give it up for Lent you should be able to give it up forever. I generally agree with this philosophy, but since I do not attend church regularly (and putting it that way is generous) I wanted to find my own way to reflect on Jesus' sacrifice. After talking to a good friend and discovering that she'd been veggie for four months I decided to give a little more thought to how much meat I was consuming. It was far more than I had thought and it was definitely not that kind of meat I should be eating, i.e. it was highly processed junk meat. Thus, I gave up meat.
Lent is technically the 40 days between Ash Wednesday and Palm Sunday, but I decided to go for the gold and tack on the extra 7 days until Easter. That means I can officially eat meat today, but I have no plans to do so. I have no plans to do so in the immediate future, but I also do not plan to convert to being a full-on vegetarian. Instead, I am trying to figure out a middle ground where I contentiously consume meat no more than once a week.
Perhaps this seems somewhat counterproductive, but another friend made a very valid argument: why punish an entire industry when there are those farmers who are not so unethical? Yes, they are still killing animals, but I do still believe that animals are meant to be eaten. I enjoy eating meat, but I also cannot deny how amazing I have felt since I've given it up.
However, this cannot entirely be attributed to going veggie. It is not just that I have not eaten meat, but that I have put much more consideration into what I put in my body in general. I have been eating better overall and I can certainly continue to do so and occasionally eat meat. At least meat that is locally raised because the biggest part of the plan overall is to buy locally whether it is meat or fruits and vegetables. It's my own little food revolution.
Happy healthy eating! Vive la revolution!
So we are thinking of becoming members of that co-op on Turner! Their meat is locally grown, and although it's expensive, I think it will cut down on our meat intake as well. It's $150 bucks, but you can pay $5 a month over time, and it's completely refundable!
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