What is that?
The Christian feast, celebrated on January 6th to remember the part of the Christmas Story when three Wise Men from the East come and adore the Saviour King, humbly born in a stable, kept warm by his parents and the presence of domesticated animals... The three men followed a star to Bethlehem and, lo behold, there was Jesus, just as they had expected. They showered him with gifts of great value and significance and warned his parents of impending danger from Herod, whom they had met on the way; they encouraged the Holy Family to flee immediately... It is believed that those wealthy wise men were astronomers, or even astrologers, not usually inclined to 'get involved', but on that fateful day they saw the light and did something decisive and somewhat out of character. Soon countless firstborns were massacred, but Jesus, Mary and Joseph were far away into Egypt by then and escaped the jealous king. Those three really made a difference; and all they had to do was act on their already existing kindness and speak out.
Imagine following a star and believing that a baby born to save the world would be found at the end of the journey... A momentous revelation. A wow moment followed by a change of one's ways. In the dictionary:
Some of the common straws that people clutch at:
'But I love a juicy steak';
'I couldn't live without my cheese';
'Christmas wouldn't be the same without a turkey';
'If we don't eat the animals the world will be overrun by them';
'Bacon, though';
'The cows need milking otherwise their udders will keep producing milk and they will be in pain';
'I do need to eat some meat, for my health'...
If any of those statements cross your mind, be reassured: You are not alone. Every vegan has said one or more of those things, along with 'I could NEVER be vegan!', before eventually seeing the light and realizing that a kinder way of life is actually no more expensive, much healthier all round, less destructive and altogether preferable. Also, it has never been so easy! The alternatives are flooding the market and many small companies are booming because more and more people demand food that is truly cruelty-free (not merely labelled with a deceitful Red Tractor or RSPCA-approved logo). Multinationals are of course hopping on the band wagon and many popular products are appearing on the shelves, such as Hellman's Vegan mayo.
You can't go shopping without seeing more and more mouth-watering vegan foods adding to the already 'accidentally vegan' products (Yes, Oreos...). What a joy to live in this day and age and witness that change for good!
Sadly, you can't go shopping without risking to find yourself shivering with cold in the body parts aisles, where flesh from dead animals bears no resemblance to the victims exploited and slaughtered for this addictive product. We need to change that. As vegan aisles become larger and larger, we must see the displays of dead animal parts vanish from our shops - certainly any butcher's ought to shut down and sell up (or transition to plant-based, some already have done!); make way for the future.
Will you help? Try Veganuary; like many others, it is just possible that the revelation will allow you to never look back.
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