Dear free-spirited fetus,

Today daddy and I talked about our eating choices and how to share with you our thoughts about it. We’re both vegetarian (and often times, vegan) which means we don’t eat anything with eyes. It led to quite an interesting topic that, I’ll be honest, most of the world are avid meat-eaters - so we’re in the minority.

What’s going to happen if we raise you to be a vegetarian and then you go to school one day and the cafeteria tempts you with meat?

This topic may get heavy, but if you want, read on!

So basically I should start by saying that both me and your daddy were once meat-eaters, as most people are when they turn vegetarians. Years ago, we made the choice to become vegetarians after watching video after video of animals being victimized and treated unethically during their capture, their lives, their torture, and their death. It’s not a pretty topic, I promise you - and if you knew how meat was made, you’d either lose your lunch or have nightmares. And I’m also convinced that if you braved yourself to watch just one video of what happens to animals when they are killed in a non-regulated slaughter house, you may be experience a form of psychological confusion, deep empathy, and a compassion for animals that often feels like a pain that won’t go away. That’s how it was for me and your daddy, and considering you’re half of each of us, I can only assume you may react the same way. If you feel like being educated on where meat really comes from most of the time, check out these undercover videos of tortured animals in slaughterhouses.

I’ve been a vegetarian/vegan far before finding out I was pregnant which is a lifestyle choice I have made for many reasons. One, I love to eat healthy food. Two, I’ve looked into the eyes of hundreds of mutilated, screaming animals as they were dying and that was enough for me to always have a visual of them, which prevents me from following through with eating meat, and often times, general items containing animal byproducts. Thirdly, many of the animals (when they die) have chemicals going through their body that stem from fear, adrenaline, and “lack of safety and survival” and those chemicals are transferred into the food we eat. When I stopped eating meat, I stopped experiencing a large percentage of subconscious fear and anxiety, which I can only believe came from the previous food I was eating. And lastly, I cannot even begin to describe to you (without scaring you for an eternity) the amount of disease, dangerous hormones, toxic waste, and foul smells associated with lame animals - who are killed and then served on a platter, regardless of their health.

It’s gruesome, I know. So what’s going to happen when you want to eat chicken? Or pork? Or a pepperoni pizza? Or steak? My answer is simple. When you’re old enough to get a job and pay taxes, you’re old enough to buy the food of your choice. But I want you to at least be educated about what you’ll be eating.

Some people argue that animals are worth killing because “God” put them on the earth. In that case, it must be ok to murder humans too. We’re all life forms. How can we eat anything with eyeballs when, for us, it means they can see,  feel, and experience emotions? It is said that the eyes are the “window into the soul” and your father and I truly believe that humans AND animals all come from the same source. We’re all capable of love, emotion, and empathy. In the book, “Animal Speak,” there are emotional summaries of hundreds of animals which describe their core, basic survival responses. I’m continually surprised to read the similiarites almost all animals have with human beings. Many of them experience love, trust, empathy, social anxiety, fear, sadness, pain, eagerness, and even have to face tough life choices including suicide. Did you know that some species of red ants are willing to kill themselves when crossing over a puddle so that the ant behind them can use them as a bridge? We’re all life forms. We must learn to respect animals in the same (or close) way we respect human beings.

I’m not asking you to never eat meat. I suspect one day you’ll try it. Maybe you’ll even like it. I’m asking you educate yourself first. Meet your meat. Try to buy from a local farm that does humane butchering and raises them in a loving environment. Please stay away from fast-food restaurant chains. A majority of them directly support the tremendous cruelty of animals: especially McDonalds, Kentucky Fried Chicken, Burger King, Wendys, Carls. Jr., Hardees, Jack in the Box, Taco Bell, etc. And I beg you, if you DO eat meat, while you’re eating it, thank and show genuine gratefulness to the animal for sacrificing itself and enduring it’s hardships (which you may never fully grasp the entirety of) so you could eat. Then ask the Divine Source to bless the animal in its possible afterlife and reward it. It shows at least an effort to care.

We are seriously considering homeschooling you (at least short-term), simply so we can spend a few years educating you on vegetarianism as you come to understand it. We’re looking into the pros and cons and will make a decision based on what we feel is right and good.

I’m sorry we live in a world where bad things happen to living beings. Sometimes I wish the reality were that all there is - is peace, love, harmony, and happiness. Unfortunately, other things exist in this world such as greed, power, hunger, selfishness, convenience, and even ignorance. The beauty of all of this is that WE can BE the change the world needs. I wouldn’t encourage you to “convince others” to become vegetarians, because from my experience, most meat-eaters don’t welcome it. The best thing to do is follow what you believe to be right, good, honest, and ethical… and hope you set a good example.

There are things I will share with you that I don’t want to get graphic about here. If you ever want to know… ANYTHING… about animals… I’ll share with you everything you ask about. Just be sure you ask the right questions!

Love
Mommy