I make PETA proud

For those of you confused about what I am talking about, PETA are People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals. Now, how do I make them proud? Well I am never cruel to animals, the thought of even touching fur makes me shudder and meat has never touched my lips.

Vegetarianism is a very cool concept nowadays. There are so many types of vegetarians that it simply boggles the mind; vegans, vegetarians, vegetarians who eat fish etc. Frankly speaking the people who claim to be vegetarians but then add that they eat fish or bacon as an afterthought irritates the crap out of me. Why? Well simply coz it gets harder and harder to explain to people what kind of vegetarian I am. Life was much simpler when there were only two options – veg or non-veg.

In the past it has not been much of a problem simply because people in India grasp the concept of being a vegetarian and where the majority of the population is vegetarian or knows somebody who is. In Australia it is a hot topic and a moment of wide eyed surprise when you mention that you are a vegetarian. But it does not stop there, and then you have to explain what kind of vegetarian you are. Some Australians still don’t fully comprehend the meaning of vegetarian, like for Qantas, a turkey sandwich is a vegetarian meal and the air hostess is unable to grasp why I would not want to eat it when it says vegetarian. When I related this to my father, he joked that maybe she meant that the meal was vegetarian as the turkey in the sandwich was a non-meat eating animal and thus vegetarian.

My sister has her own way of telling people, she simply starts listing all the animals and types of meat available in the world. This leads to a very lengthy conversation and nowadays she simply says that “If cut open, it bleeds, then I don’t eat it”. Not something you want to picture, but I find it stops the questions or maybe people are just trying to clear their heads.

Recently I met up with some of my friends who make up an oriental mix (Chinese, Thai and Vietnamese). When the time came for lunch, they all converged at KFC while I looked around for veggie options. My status as a vegetarian came as quite a shock to all them and for the next hour I was grilled like never before on my eating choice. Since when was I a vegetarian? Why was I one? What would happen if I ate meat? What if I got a sudden desire to eat chicken? Questions that I have never pondered on before were thrown at me amidst disbelief. It was then I realized that to the meat eaters, we vegetarians look like a stupid bunch, people who forsake yummy food for roots and vegetables. I guess it’s hard for a person who eats meat 4 times a day to understand that food without meat can also be just as tasty if not more.

So, although I won’t be participating in any of their wacky promotions and protests on the streets anytime soon, PETA would be proud to know that I remain a vegetarian (hopefully for life) despite the gasps, disbelief, questions and temptations of chicken nuggets (apparently soul food according to my oriental friends).