I thought I'd share something that has been showing up for us consistently since the summer.
Our oldest, Matilda, who just turned 4, recently discovered that meat comes from animals, and specifically a dead animal (pork, beef, chicken, fish etc.)
At every meal a common comment from her is 'did this die?'
And it doesn't matter what we're eating, wether it's bread, meat or vegetables, we are saying yes.
The reason is because it doesn't matter what is on your plate, there is always something that died for you to be able to eat.
That is the circle of life.
Wether it's an insect, another animal (like a mouse, skunk, snake etc. getting caught in a tiller that's harvesting wheat for example) or a human - because avocado cartels are a thing and humans die for avocados, living beings (including humans) die for humans to be able to eat.
And something else that we never think about when it comes to the food industry, what conditions are the humans that are harvesting our fruits and vegetables and our meat in? Are they being treated fairly? Are they compensated appropriately? Do they have a good life?
We are so often worried about the conditions the animals are in (which is valid and appropriate) and at the same time, when it comes to our food, we seem to forget to worry about the humans involved.
Our food does not come from the grocery store. How did it get there? What were the conditions for that food? For that animal? For that human? Do they use pesticides? How is the land treated? Are the owners thinking about the planet or not even?
Sometimes if we think about it, regenerative agriculture or farming for the soil can actually increase the amount of lives instead of decreasing them - even if you are still eating meat.
I know this is a lot, it's very much out of sight, out of mind but it's so important and we don't talk about it which is a prime example of living in a first world country and having grocery stores that have everything available at all times of the year.
It doesn't matter what's on your plate, something died for you to eat and that doesn't make you bad or wrong, it makes you human.
It sucks, it really does
and, it's beautiful at the same time
even after a life has left a body, the body is there to nourish more life (human, animal and/or soil life).
We are a part of nature and nature is death, there is no way around it.