I was a vegetarian for about seven years. I began eating meat again eight years ago. Recently, I have been contemplating my reasons, both for my original choice to not eat meat and my later choice to resume consumption. I can recall quite a few different reasons, none of which had much of an impact on me on their own. It was several factors coalescing that swayed me fifteen years back.
I was never truly an “animal rights” person or a hardcore environmentalist. However, for as long as I have understood the true costs of mass meat production, the cruelty, the health risk to consumers and the ecological degradation, have all seemed irrational to me. So, why did I start eating meat again? Short answer: I had a few beers and wanted a Dick’s hamburger. Shorter answer: I don’t know.
My views haven’t changed much on the subject but my actions have. I have been forced to contend with this lately. The more I focus on it, the more I understand I must resolve this tension. I have been considering ways to make my values align better with how I live. I am cultivating intention and making goals. First on the list: I will cut my meat consumption in half.
I’m feeling better already.