On Eating Meat.

Not so long ago, if you had offered me a bacon sample at the farmer's market, I would have turned my head. But about a year ago now, I decided to abandon my vegetarian ways in favor of meat eating.

What would make a socially conscious animal lover start munching on pig again?? After all, I used to look at meat eaters and former vegetarians as uneducated sell outs. (Sorry!)

Here are some of the thoughts I had wrestled with for the year before I started to eat meat.

1. Most importantly, I wondered if abstaining from meat consumption would really change the meat industry.  If we vote with how we spend our money, can complete removal from participation actually cause a change? Funneling money into ethically, sustainable raised meat in my local food shed seemed like a more productive way to change the industry. 
2. Buying grain-meat was supporting factories, not farms. As fun as it was to find good vegetarian "meat" for those times I really craved it, this food did not FEEL nourishing to me. It felt like the vegetarian version of spam. Cheap, fake, plastic. Yuck.
3. The year I was diagnosed with my endocrine-type disorder was the same year I had become a vegetarian. I often wondered if vegetarian eating was a related factor in my illness becoming increasingly worse. 
4. We were trying to become pregnant, and my diet records showed that I was not getting nearly enough protein, even though I was very much following the book.
5. I had heard several smart former vegetarians mention their depression while following a vegan or vegetarian diet, and I had recently met some of the most unhealthy vegans. With thyroid problems. And depression. Too close for comfort.

But then, one day, I wanted meat more than I have ever craved any food in my life. I wanted bacon like I would want air while at the bottom of the pool. I wanted bacon like children need their mothers. I wanted bacon like plants turn to the sun.

So I ate it. And I've kept eating it. And I have not been magically cured yet. But I feel more balanced, less tired, happier. Bring on the free range, local meats!