When did this realization hit me? Well first I mad point of trying not to eat meat when I did not know where it came from. Luckily we have many farms around this area that raise their animals humanely and never abuse them (as with most slaughter houses). So I felt fine eating meat on occasion. Then one morning (about three days ago) I was making scrambled eggs from my daughter and then the light went on - this is an embryo (or one day could have been). Then I asked myself would I eat a human embryo? The thought sounded gross and made my stomach turn a little.
Tonight I made tacos and as I was cooking the meat I again started to think - I am cooking the decaying flesh of a cow. Yes I said decaying because once things die they start to decay. Then the smell hit me and again my stomach turned a little. I then added the taco spices and the smell went away, but the thought was still there. I did eat it but not with the same enjoyment that I used to have.
Then more realizations hit me. This was a sentient creature (Sentience is the ability to feel or
perceive subjectively.) (wikipedia) At one time this piece of meat that I am eating could feel. What right do I have to take part in the death of this animal? I then started to associate all the meats that I used to eat and (finally) connect them to the animal. It may sound stupid but I would not make the connection in my mind's eye that the ham for Chirstmas was once a pig. That the hamburger, the steak, the roast, was once a cow.This was very disturbing to me. It was disturbing that I could so easily disconnect from reality and think that what I was eating did not have any affect on the other creature in this world. That there are so many people out there that probably have the same disconnect. If they watched the video Meet Your Meat and not feel completely disgusted and have the light go on for them as well I would be surprised.
A vegitarian. This is more and more what I become.
