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| One of my favorite vegan restaurants, Strong Hearts Cafe, is located in Syracuse, NY. The menu consists of all vegan food with egg, cheese, meat substitutes and more. |
It's truly amazing in my five years of being a vegetarian how many times I've heard "Krista, don't eat that piece of cheese! It was made with ham!" Or "Don't you know this is a soy burger?" when it completely is not.
Today, I feel like I'm a vegetarian for all the wrong reasons. I am a vegetarian out of habit. Five years ago when I became a vegetarian I was in tenth grade, age 15 and a total hippie. Five years ago when people asked me why I decided to become vegetarian I told them I believed my life wasn't worth more than any animal's life. Today, I would roll my eyes at myself and walk away.
I stopped eating meat cold turkey (pun totally intended). I just stopped for no reason. I had tried to become a vegetarian before and I completely failed after two weeks. I had stomach pains and was always hungry. I ate a lot of peanut butter, fruits, and carbs (I still eat a lot of peanut butter, fruit, and carbs but that is besides the point).
I love being a vegetarian. It's weird that I do. I love vegetarian chicken nuggets and substitute burgers (if I see a veggie burger option on a menu I WILL get it). I love finding vegan and vegetarian restaurants and dragging my friends there. When I discovered a local vegan restaurant in Syracuse a few years ago I have made all of my friends eat there and I like to think they love it as much as I do.
Even though I go to family barbecues and have to bring my own food and at events I eat only bread, I know that it is worth it for me to be vegetarian. Today it has been five years since I ate a piece of bacon and I'm completely okay with. And even if I believe that I'm vegetarian for all the wrong reasons, I know that I made the right reasons once.
Today, I feel like I'm a vegetarian for all the wrong reasons. I am a vegetarian out of habit. Five years ago when I became a vegetarian I was in tenth grade, age 15 and a total hippie. Five years ago when people asked me why I decided to become vegetarian I told them I believed my life wasn't worth more than any animal's life. Today, I would roll my eyes at myself and walk away.
I stopped eating meat cold turkey (pun totally intended). I just stopped for no reason. I had tried to become a vegetarian before and I completely failed after two weeks. I had stomach pains and was always hungry. I ate a lot of peanut butter, fruits, and carbs (I still eat a lot of peanut butter, fruit, and carbs but that is besides the point).
I love being a vegetarian. It's weird that I do. I love vegetarian chicken nuggets and substitute burgers (if I see a veggie burger option on a menu I WILL get it). I love finding vegan and vegetarian restaurants and dragging my friends there. When I discovered a local vegan restaurant in Syracuse a few years ago I have made all of my friends eat there and I like to think they love it as much as I do.
Even though I go to family barbecues and have to bring my own food and at events I eat only bread, I know that it is worth it for me to be vegetarian. Today it has been five years since I ate a piece of bacon and I'm completely okay with. And even if I believe that I'm vegetarian for all the wrong reasons, I know that I made the right reasons once.