Tag Archives | Thanksgiving

Making Vegan Easy Week 47 Round-Up

November 30, 2012

Every day in 2012 I’m posting one tip on my Facebook page to make living vegan easier. It’s going to take an army of vegans to move the world in a more compassionate direction. Join us today.

Tip #325: One of the best forms of activism is to feed people vegan food. We invited friends over for an early Thanksgiving dinner. None had experienced a homemade vegan meal before. They really didn’t know what to expect. They arrived curious and left with satisfied bellies and, dare I say, impressed. It was a good experience all-around. If you don’t know how to cook, then learn. It will serve you and the animals well.

Tip #326: Shop local this holiday season. It just makes sense.

Tip #327: Today is Thanksgiving. For vegans attending a family gathering where turkey is the centerpiece on the table, this day is ripe for potential discord or gratefulness. We get to choose. Remember that Thanksgiving is about being thankful and not about the turkey—even if the majority of people make it seem otherwise. Enjoy your time with family and friends today. Happy Thanksgiving!

Tip #328: Be grateful. In the spirit of Thanksgiving, send thank you notes to those who were supportive of your vegan diet yesterday. Let them know how important they are to you, regardless of their own diet. (This tip was inspired by an interview I heard on NPR yesterday with writer, Tom Chiarella. Check out his gratitude experiment here.)

Tip #329: This holiday season be sure to use eco-friendly wrapping paper. If you don’t want to buy wrapping paper (best choice!), you can use newspaper to wrap your gifts. Decorate the newspaper using paints, markers or pictures pasted to the newspaper. This could be a super fun craft project for kids.

Tip #330: If you saved last year’s holiday cards that you received, you could REUSE them to make new holidays cards for this year. Decorate blank note cards or paper using the old cards. Another fun craft project!

Tip #331: Change your expectations and allow for the possibility that others can change.

If you can’t see others as potentially kind and compassionate beings, how can you ever expect them to see themselves that way? ~Sharon Gannon, Yoga and Vegetarianism

Tip #332: A fresh batch of granola would make a nice holiday gift. It’s soooo easy to make too!

Tip #334: Try something new (and keep growing). (I have an article in YogaChicago this month that discusses just this concept.) Have you tried something new recently? It could be anything…a food, a book or movie genre, an exercise class…you get the idea.

Hey friends, have you shared these tips with your family and friends yet? If not, do it today. Join me on Facebook to read these tips daily and to learn more about what’s going on in the vegan world.

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A Thanksgiving Haiku, Especially for You

November 23, 2011

A gathering tribe
Spreading peas and joy worldwide
Glad be the vegans

Wishing you a very happy Thanksgiving!

Thanks for reading,
Christine

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The Holidays

November 21, 2011

With the holiday season at our front door, I believe everyone can benefit from this post, originally published in 2009. Both publicly and privately, readers responded in favor of the vegan. (Of course you did.) Some of you thought I was too hard on myself and that the host should have been more willing to make their guests happy. I didn’t write this though to blame anyone (including myself).

When I reread this, what comes up for me is that we all need to communicate better. I know I don’t intentionally try to piss people off, and I believe that goes for others as well. Take time this holiday season to communicate with your family. Relationships are so important to our happiness, and yet it doesn’t mean turning your back on your values either.


Last year  around this time I read the following article, Vegetarians and the Challenge of Thanksgiving. The article was irritating and the comments infuriating. The first comment begins and I quote directly (typos included):

Factory farming….you find one or two cases of abuse and point your fingers and say that is how it is everywhere, Its all like that…

…Most animals are farm raised, at least around here. raised in pastures, coops and large pens. You can go there and talk to them and see how there feeling today. Since you feel they can talk or you can tell by looking at them how they “feel”.

Much misunderstanding and misinformation about vegetarianism. Mix this with family and the fun begins. Ha.

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A Very Vegan Thanksgiving

November 9, 2011

How will you celebrate Thanksgiving this year? I plan to join some friends for a home-cooked vegan meal. Whether you enjoy cooking, eating out or carrying in, you have options for a very vegan Thanksgiving. But first, let’s watch a new Mercy for Animals commercial:

According to Mercy for Animals…

More than 300 million turkeys are killed in the U.S. every year – 40 million for Thanksgiving dinners alone. Most turkeys killed for food are raised in unnatural conditions, crammed by the thousands into windowless warehouses, where disease, smothering and heart attacks are common. Turkeys are drugged and bred to grow so large, so quickly that their legs are often unable to withstand their own weight. Countless birds slowly starve to death within inches of food after they become crippled and are unable to move.

Ideas for Celebrating Thanksgiving the Vegan Way

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Eatin’ Vegan on Thanksgiving

October 12, 2011

Thanksgiving 2008

It’s easy being vegan ’cause you can eat Tofurky on Thanksgiving.

Vegans are creative folks and, of course, you have options beyond Tofurky. I like Field Roast’s Celebration Roast as an alternative. But most Thanksgivings, I haven’t had a turkey substitute.

Vegan Thanksgiving at my friend’s house involves delicious home-cooked food. It’s that simple. Do we miss the turkey? Absolutely not. Does everyone enjoy the vegan dinner? Absolutely! Are there omnivores at the table? Yes, yes, there are. Give it a try this year, and remember, Thanksgiving is about being thankful and not a turkey.

If you’re able, consider sponsoring a turkey this holiday season from a farm sanctuary including my personal favorites SASHA Farm or Woodstock Farm Animal Sanctuary.

Turkey, not Thanksgiving dinner.

This proud turkey lives at SASHA Farm. Visiting a farm animal sanctuary is a real treat. Take a day to volunteer and you will get up close and personal with the animals. Animals are cool. Help them.

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