01.- WTF
It has been more than 10 years since I stopped eating meat, that is I do not put pieces of dead animals in my stomach.
First it was because I did not want to inflict pain on animals, I have respect for life and I could not bare the idea of how cows, porks and chickens are killed in truly cruel ways to feed us.
I didn't plan it, I just couldn't eat a burger without thinking that for me to be able to enjoy it a cow was murdered in a horrific way. So I stopped eating meat, soon I realized that it was not so easy.
I had spent my life eating meat like there was no alternative, after all fruit and veggies are side dishes, right?, not main courses. By that time, vegetarianism was not mainstream like today, but I was fortunate enough to live in a place where "veggie food" was available at the supermarket, mostly tofu and soy beans in many many formats, that and pasta, fruit, bread, veggies and lots of peanut butter did it for me.
However, the problem was not finding something to eat instead of meat, I was actually feeling better than before, I was full vegan for the first year, no conservatives, no cans, nothing... until pizza made me eat cheese, and eggs are pretty much in every recipe so eating out was really tricky, but the real problem, one that by the way I did not anticipate, was the fact that I found myself having to explain to people (family, friends and complete strangers) why I was doing such a "crazy and retarded thing to myself, depriving my body of the much necessary nutrients that only animal corpses could provide" (or something along those lines I really can't remember the exact words).
According to family and friends I had lost my mind. I was, however, feeling better than ever, even my vision improved, colors seem brighter and I lost a lot of weight, also, I noticed that my mood improved, I was happy and I thought it was because I was being part of the solution (stopping animal cruelty), but then my life changed drastically... I had to move back home. And back home there was no tofu products anywhere and being vegetarian was like being in a weird and ugly cult, something that was undoubtedly going to kill you. I would have had an easier time if I had turned into a martian or something.
Every single day my loved ones told me I was acting crazy and being stupid. At first I did not mind, after all it was "understandable" since I believe that you can not understand how people sees thee world unless you walk in their shoes and I know no one can walk in mine so how can anyone understand, so I tried to explain, but after 1,248 times (give or take) I realized everyone was convinced that I was wrong or simply crazy... because I decided not to eat anything that had eyes.
That was back in 2008, when I moved from Vancouver to Yucatán, the home of cochinita pibil, a magical place where having dead animals for lunch and dinner was the only way to eat. Maybe breakfast could spare meat, but only sometimes.
After a while I realized it was pointless to tell people about my "new found" way of eating, but I did spent a few years trying to convince people not to eat meat because blah blah blah... until I gave up, it almost always ended up in people looking perplexed and telling me that I should eat meat or else I would literally die of weakness.
Times are different now, you can eat a vegetarian meal pretty much anywhere and since people are now eating even human flesh my "crazy ways" are now more normal than ever. But, from time to time I still have to stand the jokes and well intended advises from my loved ones telling me that I am simply wrong and could die from lack of nutrients. I must admit that not eating animals made me feel like I was a better person, but that is nonsense.
