Vegan Pledge Days 12, 13, & 14: Missionary Position? No thanks.

There's a picture that I have to paint--and my vegan friends may not like the colors that I'm going to use.

Tonight we had a post-holiday dinner with friends, a dinner in place for months--before we, as a unit, decided to take the Vegan pledge. The menu had been set in stone: it was to be a traditional thanksgiving feast.  And, vegan and non-vegan friends,  that menu was carried out tonight.  

This menu had been a source of contention between myself and my vegan pledge hubby.  I, who sees no turning back from the vegan lifestyle, wanted to shun the original menu and move forward with a vegan version.  My husband felt it was necessary to honor the palates of our guests.  Well folks, here's the naked tofufuckingtruth: there a certain fights worth fighting--and then sometimes,  all that matters is keeping that marriage dashboard green.  Hence, there was a turkey on the table (and the vegan selection of homemade soup).  Majority reached for turkey (yuck- not me!). Minority reached for soup. And the soup was totally kick-ass.

Look, I struggled with this blog post and I didn't want to even admit this menu with my vegan community, but I like my vegetable soup with a side of honesty.  Because guess what? Being vegan in a non-vegan world is tough as nails and my husband and I, we're human: as a vegan, I find that non-vegan people ask questions, make comments, have opinions--and share those opinions with vigor and force, like they can't (under)stand this decision I've made. Some people think that when you turn vegan, you've also adopted the sole mission of converting everyone around you.  I didn't accept a Missionary Position when I joined the vegan community, got it? [insert military salute] But ask and I'll answer.

I'll answer even those inane questions about scenarios: "you're in the woods, and there's nothing to eat but squirrel--and if you don't eat it, you'll die."  Guess what, your stupid f'ing scenario is just that, f'ing stupid. I'll eat bear shit in the woods if there's nothing to eat and if I don't I'll die.   In fact, there's a ton of shit I'd eat in the woods if it was a matter of life and death: including, but not limited to the aforementioned bear shit, tree bark, deer piss, squirrel eyeballs, butterfly wings, etc.  Why do people just want you to say that you'll eat meat again if there's an apocalyptic occurrence? Oooohh, you've got me! I admit it! I'll eat animals then! You've found the great loophole in veganism: the overarching human deeply-hemp-seeded will to live if I was stranded with no hope in the woods forever.  

Anyway, back to tonight's menu. Yes, I was hostess to a non-vegan meal tonight. I can feel the judgement rising up in the back of people's throats--the I told you so's!, the you're a bad vegan! but do me a favor and swallow them. I don't need anyone to be a missionary to me either. I didn't like the decision that was made, but I like my husband.

I need to count and appreciate the tofu-eggs in my basket:

• My carnivorous husband agreed to go vegan (holy shit, that's huge)
•  he did it to support me (totally huge)
•  he cooks vegan meals for us (can we say convenient?!)
• he willingly and openly shares the positive effects of his dietary lifestyle (brave and touching!), and he wants to continue being vegan...(holy shit, really?)

except for holidays --christmas, thanksgiving....(and boom goes the dynamite, taking with it all my vegan dreams for a vegan household with little vegans scampering around wearing cloth diapers and citing the china study)

Do I fight the fight? Is it worth it if he agrees to be vegan the other 363 days of the year? But what message does it send if we take the two biggest family holidays and serve something so against our (my) principles for the sake of ensuring that we have guests?  And what about when we have children...?

My head is spinning....I can't answer any of these questions just yet...good thing november is a long ways off.

Signing off.