A Christmas Win

My sister was vegetarian for a while before I went vegan, after I went vegan I set about (gently) converting her to veganism. I know my sister well and we have a wonderful relationship, I knew she was choosing vegetarianism for ethical reasons and just didn’t understand veganism yet, but would be on board once she did. My sister is now vegan, a place she arrived at with my encouragement but it’s very much something she’s secure in.

She and I are the only vegans in the family, but because of us our partners and parents largely eat vegan food. My parents are now even choosing vegan options at restaurants when we eat out, and maybe only eat animal products a couple of times a month vs multiple times a day like they used to.

My sisters in laws are in town for Christmas and have invited our family to join them for their family Christmas event at a restaurant. I just found out it’s at the local vegan restaurant.

That’s 9 of us, having a vegan Christmas celebration because 2 of us are vegan. I sometimes feel really worn down about the state of the world and feel like I can’t have much impact on anything.

But my choice to go vegan has influenced so much change in the people around me. My parents originally thought veganism was akin to religious extremism but now have genuine and open conversations with people in their lives about the things I’ve taught them and why vegan philosophy makes sense.

My veganism has created waves of awareness and change in the people I love. These waves are still gaining momentum and I don’t doubt that more people around me will become vegan in the future because of the seeds I have planted.

Sometimes the weight of what we do to animals feels like it’ll crush me, but times like this makes the pain of not looking away feel manageable.