Yes, You Can

When I decided to become vegan, I knew it was the best decision for me but I didn't know what others would think. I was a little concerned about backlash. Thankfully, I've not heard anything negative. At least, not directed at me. What I hadn't expected was the outpouring of people saying, "Good for you, but I could never!" and then getting an earful of adamant exclamations of exactly why the person speaking could never become vegan. I heard everything from "I'm too old to change" to "I don't like tofu" to a lot of "I could never live without ________ " with the blank filled in with everything from cheese to leather. 

I get it. I do. (And for the record, I don't really like tofu, either.) This change looks like a big jump, incredibly difficult. But to say you can't do something? That simply isn't true. Everyone is in a different place and just five months ago, I would never have seen myself here today. It took four years of vegetarianism to get me to the point where I could make this decision in the time it took me to read a book. Maybe cheese is important to you today, maybe tomorrow it isn't. That's all I'm saying. 

You can do whatever you choose to do. I respect that this isn't a choice you want to make today. But I can't respect you selling yourself short and underestimating your own abilities. You can do whatever you choose to do. Please remember that. 

Comments

[Mary]

You are right. We can do whatever we want, right? Thanks for the reminder. xo