Mistakes

I have been a strict vegetarian for 12 years.  Next year that will mean HALF my life and a vegetarian.  I, like many others, started out rocky.  I was only 11 years old and uneducated about how most food was made.  I ate Jello and Sno Balls because who would think animals would need to die to make those.  One time my mom even told me that the Chinese food dish i was eating was tofu, when It turned out to be chicken. As I got older I made less and less mistakes.

Still everyone slips up.  As a long time vegetarian, I have set rules for myself in order to avoid mistakes.  I only eat yogurt if I can read the ingredients. READ READ READ!  I always read ingredients.  I made so many rookie mistakes just because I assumed something was meat free.

Everyone strives for perfection in the area that is most important to them.  I want to be the perfect kitty mommy,  the perfect girlfriend, and the perfect vegetarian.  Because, when it comes to being the perfect vegetarian, your mistakes don't just effect you, but they take the lives of helpless animals.



The other day I was grabbing a late night snack.  I reached for a bag of chips that I brought home from a restaurant.  As I was collecting my laundry from the dryer and munching on chips, I noticed a weird taste, but didn't think much of it.  Halfway through the bag I couldn't get over the taste, so I decided to check the ingredients.  Lard...LARD.



I felt sick to my stomach thinking about how I had a dead pig in there.  I know no one is perfect, and that everyone makes mistakes, and that I shouldn't beat myself up over an innocent mistake.  But all I could think about was that poor pig.

I am sorry little piggy.  I didn't mean to eat you.

How do you feel when you make a vegetarian or vegan slip up? Do you feel as bad as I do?

Bye from the Veggie Side