This year my son has openly said he would like to be a vegetarian. Well I have no problem with his desire for a healthy lifestyle or his ethical choices in the matter either. I do have a problem with cooking using no animal fats, or meat. It's not what I am accustomed to and will require a lot of thought and practice to help him.
Tonight was a classic case in point. Chicken pot pie. We removed the chicken for him before baking. As he sat there eating I realized that lard would be part of the animal lineup of no no's. He was happily enjoying his meal. Should I tell my 11 year old that it contained animal products? It was a dilemma to say the least. Why? Well I rather like seeing my kids eat. Something about them satisfying their hunger makes me happy. Strange as it sounds I didn't want to see him deflated over a meal he was enjoying. On the other hand I didn't want to lie to him. I want him to be educated about his food choices. If he is truly serious about becoming a lifelong vegetarian isn't it my job as his mother to not only educate but facilitate?
I told him...he suddenly was full. Although he may not have finished his meal he was grateful that I had shared the information with him. So far he has caught himself with bacon in his hand and put it down. He passed on his favorite jello jiggler dessert at a restaurant, and today he learned that lard comes from animals and is found in most pastries.
I am proud of him having the will power to resist foods he normally would eat without a second thought to support his own personal belief that animals are better alive. It's going to be an interesting ride in the next few months. I invite you along on this multi part series exploring what is vegetarianism and how one young man gave up his love of certain foods to save one more animal somewhere.
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