Vegan

George is trying to be vegan. Since we watched the movie, “Food Inc,” I have tried to buy natural and organic food. It’s a little more expensive, but in the long run, we’ll save on medical bills as we get older. We hardly ever eat at restaurants, but when we do, we support Chipotle. I’m not a big fan of Mexican food, but this restaurant is trying to do the right thing and we believe in that.

George recently read the book, “Veganist” by Kathy Freston. He was strongly influenced and disturbed by what the author wrote. Soya milk??? I would have never imagined in my wildest dreams that he would drink soy milk. One of our Japanese friends invited us to her country home and she prepared most of the food with vegetables that she grew. It was amazing that she could create a huge variety of dishes with only vegetables to fill an entire table. George said, “I’m not a rabbit. Where’s the beef?” Now, he wants to have a similar kind of life. He says he wants to be a vegan, not only to benefit his health, but to prevent cruelty to animals and preserve the environment.

It is interesting that there are many people who are sensitive about importing food from Japan. Some people are taking iodine for even a small amount of radiation. If you take a moment to think about it, processed foods along with many foods that are found in restaurants are unhealthier than the produce coming from Japan. Meat that has been charred can cause cancer. Food that has been cooked in aluminum or microwaved in plastic can also create health risks. We usually never question those foods because we enjoy the taste and convenience. I am guilty for being one of those people.   

We rarely watch TV, but we did notice how many commercials are about pharmaceutical drugs, weight loss, diabetes, or junk food. In the short period time our TV was on, we heard about the various side effects of prescribed drugs. The advertisers of these medications talked so fast that I had a hard time following what they were saying. I found it to be a good way to practice English. Every once in a while I would hear, “death” as one of the side effects. Why would anyone want to take a medication that could cause a more serious side effect than the original symptom? George says that those fast food companies help the pharmaceutical companies make big $$$...Junk food →weight loss → diabetes → drugs.Umm…shouldn’t we be a little smarter?

To help George become a vegan, a lot of effort is required from me. It’s not easy to create a dish that tastes good without fish, meat, or animal byproducts such as cheese. I, however, totally agree to respect animal rights. I’ll follow the principle of my favorite English phrase, “What goes around, comes around.” Investing more time with the health, life and the lives of others, and caring more about the Earth will eventually come back to help us with our future.  

Erika