Veggie Tale Woes
May 22nd, 2009, 1:41 pm · 8 Comments · posted by apetty
Recently, our family physician suggested that my wife and I become vegetarians. He said it would add years of better health to our lives with the problems that we have.
We had been thinking of doing this and his encouragment made us take the leap to a vegetarian lifestyle. We are sticking with it and enjoying it. We feel better. Our heart health, diabetes and arthritus are all better managed under this regimen.
Our grocery bill is lower, cooking time is shorter, meals out cost significantly less and surprisingly our taste buds and sensual enjoyment of eating has been enhanced. But we are experiencing some woes from other people. We are being persecuted.
Some waitresses are shocked when we do not order meat. Some men’s look and tone convey that I have lost my masculinity. Others suspect we are unamerican if we do not eat beef. And that if John McCain had been elected we would not have to endure such peccadilloes as this.
Some lean away from us for fear it is catching. Some white males express pity saying with the deepest conviction that they could not live without their meat. “How do we eat without meat?” , they want to know .
But by the grace of God we are laughing our way through these persecutions. And we plan to continue our vegetarianism for the following reasons.
It is improving our health and probably will add some healthy years to our lives. St. Paul taught that our bodies are the temple of the Holy Spirit and we are to keep them as healthy and whole as possible (I Cor.).
We just feel better physically and we feel better psychologically because we are masters of our appetite. We feel more in control of our lives.
It helps us to be a little stronger financially as we are spending a little less on food. And did you know that if everyone was vegetarian the world would be considerably better food wise because an acre of land devoted to grain or fruits and vegetables feeds scores more people than an acre devoted to raising animals for food.
We like the sense of spiritual freedom vegetarianism gives us. Many say, “I just could not live without my meat.” How sad. We believe the less attached you are to material things, even beef for dinner, the more you are able to really enjoy all that you do have. And there are many like us for whom eating meat means a loss of years of good healthy life. But folks prefer to live in a fantasy world thinking that the things they love will never hurt them.
Giving up meat also makes us feel we are doing a little something to save our environment. If every American went totally vegetarian (vegan) it would lower greenhouse gas emissions by 6%. It would do this by closing the massive factory farms where pigs, cows and chickens (especially cows) release methane gas and nitrous oxide (farts in the vulgar). These gases pound for pound are 30 times more damaging environmentally than carbon dioxide.
There is also the humane element. Proverbs says, “The righteous man takes good care of his beasts.” Having grown up raising cows, chickens and hogs I feel pity for the poor creatures crammed into the massive factory farms. I believe they would be happier, certainly cleaner, healthier and more drugfree at home on the range. And I think we would be the same in the long run.
I am not saying everybody should do exactly as we are doing. This is simply our testimony as to the joy we have found in doing a new thing. I do believe imitating us would be very helpful to some people, especially to those with health issues similiar to ours.
I also believe that everyone should think, discuss and address the issue of global warming that we might save our world and ourselves from self-destruction. Once upon a time there was a man named Noah. Everybody thought he was a liar and a fool. But a flood did come to the chagrin and destruction of many.
That mythic story exists to teach us that if we live in denial, pride and selfish arrogance similiar self-destruction can and will come upon our world. We are our own worst enemy. I suggest we enjoy life by playing safe instead of sorry.
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I got behind in my blog reading and am now coming back around to your posts.
I am dealing with diabetes myself and am trying to eat healthier. I admire your decision to go vegetarian but I know I would have a terrible time doing it myself. I never learned to like veggies.
Congrat’s to both you and your wife, may you both have a much longer healthly life. Sometimes it is our health problems that lead us to change our habits. Bad habits, that is……
answer to annie:Bless you. It is so god to hear from you again. Is your diabetes Type II? Ar you having to take pills or insulin? I wish you the very best in dealing with it. Ihav had Type II diabetes for 19 years and have to take pills all that time. But by watching my diet and exercising regularly, moderately, have managed good control with no yet observed damage to my body. I hoping to never have to take insulin shots. Stress has always been one of my biggest problems but I have done the best I have ever done on that the last two years. I wish you good success. Everybody’s daiibetes is a little bit different. I hope you have a good docter who knows his diabetes. Some general practitioners are not well informed. I hope you have a good diatician, a good support group and good continuing diabetic education. I have found all these sovery helpful. Our son is a juvenile diabetic from age 9. His pediatricians taught us the basics and pointed in the right direction for further help. Well, listen to me you wrote me the nicest note and here ;I am practicing medicine without a license. The best of luck. God bless you.
answer to Cindy: Thank you so very much Cindy. You really brighten our day with your notes. Hope things are going well with you.
I have type 2 and I think my doctor is fairly up to date on it all. I also took advantage of the classes offered by the hospital. They were very informative and there is a support group too. I am taking medicine now but my goal is to get my A1c level down to where they say it is in remission (or whatever they say–I know I will still have to watch myself) and get off the medicine. I have lost some weight and am getting regular exercise but I know, for me, it is going to take constant vigilance. I have horrible eating habits. I hope you continue to do well with your health changes.
answer to annie: What you are doing sounds very good. We have know several people who through diet, exercise and weight loss have been able to go foff their medicine and through continued vigilance have stayed very healthy. Good luck to you: you ccan do it.
I have been a vegetarian for many years except for fish on occasion. The apostles were. Jesus was, except possibly for fish. That I believe is a peseo vegetarian. As far as global warming, it is a hoax. The climatologist have concluded that even if Obama did all he proposed, it would only change our temperatues by !/16 of a degree in 50 years and 1/10 of a degree in 100 years. We are currenltly on a global cooling trend until 2030 according to the climatologists. Global warming and cooling are cyclic. Gore has made millions and intends to make billions when cap and trade passes. They plan to tax our electric to the tune of $3100 dollars per year per household not to mention all other forms of energy. This is nothing but a propaganda machine designed to put our money in their pockets.
answer to Debra: Again, thank you for writing. I am so glad to have you as a reader. I believe you need to back up and take a deep breath and seek to listen to both sides prayerfully. You know if you believe the biblical message on sin, you have to be aware that not all the right is on one side in these issues and there is the possibility that are lies on both sides. Again i marvel at the power of your active imagination. I suggest that you in the future you try for at lest a while listening to something besides Fox News and conservative talk radio. Again I hope to keep you reading and thinking with me.