Feel-Good Vegetarian

I am feeling really good about being a vegetarian today. This last beef recall seems particularly menacing. A meat-eating friend of mine called last night with a pledge that she was not going to eat beef again. I have not seen the footage she talked about, but evidently, it was all over the news—the way the sick cows were being treated has been documented by mainstream media. The thing is those "crazy" animal rights people have been trying to tell people for years that animals are being mistreated in the huge factory farming institutions that most of U.S. beef comes from. We don't want to see it, or hear it. We can't imagine a life without meat. I haven't had meat in over 20 years and I really don't miss it. I am pretty healthy. At times, I get really sick of apologizing for my personal dietary choices. Living in the Shenandoah Valley, sometimes I am treated like a bit of a freak because I don't eat meat. The mention of my vegetarianism once stopped a room full of people, who stared at me, until I explained that, yes, I was the one who asked for a veggie burger and no I am not the freak they thought I was. I have also been snubbed by "open-minded" foodies, as well. I am tired of it. You can live however you choose. As for me, I am walking and eating my truth—and I feel good about it, especially today.