V For Vegan - A Mini Anniversary
Hi everyone!
In my first blog post, I said that I was a Vegan who loved Bon Iver, coffee, and reading. Well, I'm having a mini 'Vegan-niversary' as its 8 months since I made the decision to follow an animal free, planet based diet. I thought you'd like to hear why I made the conscious choice to go Vegan and what my journey has been like so far.
It seems I'm not alone with 2016 officially known as #TheYearOfVegan. A new era in food is upon us with more people avoiding animal-derived ingredients, which are cruelly produced, unhealthy, and environmentally devastating.
I first considered going Vegan last summer. At the time I was interning at a fair trade B2B jewellery and accessories brand. Learning about the pillars and practices of fair trade opened my eyes to a new way of doing business. But in a broader sense, it raised my awareness to compassionately living with the environment, and all living creatures that reside within it.
However, there was always that a little negative voice in the back of my mind saying that I could never do it; that I eat too much meat, or that I like cheese too much; that it would be too hard and that I just didn’t have it in me.
Come fall, I went back to school and moved into my first apartment. Without conscious thought, I found myself eating less and less meat, only because I didn’t have the time or energy to cook it after a long day of class and schoolwork. Once I took note of that, I started to cut back on meat more consciously. Looking back now, I realise this was the beginning of my transition.
Over the winter break, I found myself thinking more about what being Vegan would be like. New Year's Day came and I was flooded with a feeling of inspiration; I knew that this was the time for me to take a leap of faith.
I didn’t go Vegan overnight though. I went through a transition phase, slowly weaning off dairy and increasing the amount of plant based foods I ate. After about three months of less animal protein and more plant based foods, I considered my transition complete. It wasn’t easy; old cheese habits die hard. But I made a commitment to myself and I was sticking to it.
Now, 8 months later, I’ve gotten the hang of it. I have so much more energy and feel empowered. A Vegan lifestyle is not only good for the environment but also so much better for your health. However, one of the biggest things for me is knowing that I’m not basing my sustenance on the exploitation of other living creatures. Going Vegan was challenging, but worth it. It is one of the best decisions I’ve made. And best of all there are still loads of yummy things you can eat!
I encourage anyone reading to consider visiting http://vegan.com to learn more about following a Vegan lifestyle, the health advantages, and loads of help on how to go about doing it.
Being Vegan is just one of the ways I like to engage in a more sustainable lifestyle. Another way is by engaging with like minded individuals. Like minded individuals are my colleagues at FROM Clothing, which is why I love working with them.
Thank you for taking the time to read about my Vegan journey! Don't hesitate to reach out to me here at FROM Clothing, if you want to know more or thinking about going Vegan. For now here's one of my favourite quotes by the philosopher, Albert Schweitzer:
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