Maybe this baffles you, too:
1) A well-known internet marketer writes about her ‘work for animal welfare’ and then posts a picture and recipe for sea bass on her facebook page.
2) A co-worker declares he ‘loves animals’ and proceeds to pull a roast beef sandwich out of his brown bag lunch.
3) Fill in your example here _______________________ .
‘Loving animals’ and eating animals: A disconnect?
This head scratcher has been on my mind more than usual this week as we just returned from a scuba adventure in the Dutch Antilles. What my husband (and dive buddy) likes most about scuba is gently sinking below the surface and bobbing around in the bubbles with our fine-finned, hilarious friends. There’s a real sense of humor on the reef.
The disturbing part comes on the occasion when we cross paths with another diver on the beach. More often than not, it’s a positive experience and we’ll exchange a few notes about currents, tides, water temperature, and what critters we saw 40 feet under, just offshore.
But sometimes, we’ll hear a review about “How amazing dinner was last night at It Rains Fishes“, a local restaurant.
I don’t need to tell you what they serve at It Rains Fishes. And when I hear this, it’s all I can do to keep from diving back into the waves to warn that 20 lb lobster we just watched for 10 minutes in his daytime lair, snarfing around with those funny front feet to scavenge a meal, without a care in the world about what kind of fish we might be.
Does living a healthy lifestyle necessarily incorporate compassion?
Is there some kind of compartmentalization of emotion that takes place enabling us to slice into the very animal that we admired just hours – or minutes – ago? Is it only the animals that we keep as pets who deserve to stay off our plates?
There’s an integrity to making a statement with your fork that moves beyond your personal health. Who among us is not horrified when we see a dead animal struck by a car on the road? Our first response is shock followed by compassion. There is something inside we must engender to override this instinct and pillage wildlife unnecessarily. We do have a choice.
What would happen if we reconnected with that compassion, rather than denied it?
Rockie on her first day with us
That compassion is just beneath the surface for everyone, I’m certain of it.
Why else would so many rush to lend support and advice for Rockie, the grey squirrel we encountered crawling on the forest floor in front of our house two months ago? We knew we were in for some wildlife rehab, yet didn’t know where to start. This little soldier of a mammal barely had her eyes open.
Unable to track down anyone locally to help (it was Saturday, and the vets were closed in this here small town), I turned to facebook to see if anyone out there had some immediate squirrel parenting advice for us. You can read that whole chapter of the story here: Squirrel rescue saga & facebook intervention: Meet Rocky! (that’s when we still thought ‘she’ was a ‘he’.)
I have never gotten so many responses, helping hearts, and action on my facebook pages. Two people with wildlife rehabilitation experience - with squirrels, no less – stepped forward and gave us all the advice we needed. I still get emails and facebook wall postings these many weeks later, asking about how Rockie is doing. One just came in yesterday.
- Rockie today
And honestly? This has crossed my mind. Are these people all reflecting this same sentiment on their dinner plates? No doubt some are, and some I actually know are. But what about the rest? Is there a disconnect? And does that result in disturbance below the surface in our psyche, creating stress and undermining our health?
By the way, Rockie is in smashing good form.
Rockie spends the days romping through the treetops, sleeps there too, and comes by once or twice a day to jump on our shoulders, climb a leg or grab a peanut.
Without a squirrel mama she’s still figured out how to bound up trees from danger and crack open acorns. Watching instinct take its form has been a humbling process.
Maybe this is the kind of experience more of us need.
Lani Muelrath, M.A. is Vegan Mainstream’s new Health & Fitness Expert. Watch for regular articles from Lani on how to be a strong, healthy, fit vegan. Articles, videos, and more from Lani at www.lanimuelrath.com.
Lani is also “The Plant-Strong Fitness Expert” of www.lanimuelrath.com and creator of The Body Transformation Formula and Fit Quickies™. She has a Master’s Degree in Physical Education and over 30 years of experience as a teacher, coach, and trainer. She has received awards for her instruction, created and starred in her own CBS TV Show, and her expertise in the area of health and fitness is called upon by examiner.com, Dr. John McDougall’s Health and Medical Center and Dr. Neal Barnard’s 21-Day Vegan Kickstart program. She is Certified in Plant-Based Nutrition Certification through Cornell University.
Download your FREE Fitness Kit HERE >>>>
