Choices

Before I came to the University of Washington, I was told that I would be enveloped by the party scene, my relationship would end immediately, I would never want to go back home, I would never talk to my professors in person, I would become less religious, I would gain fifteen to twenty pounds, and I would become a full blown sorority girl - I would completely change.  Well, it's almost the end of my second quarter and none of those have occurred.  I have not changed; rather I have grown significantly.  Things are definitely different than they were last year, but I have chosen the way in which they affect my life.

I don't like to go to parties much, they get really old.  My boyfriend lives across the street and we are doing just fine and are very happy.  I leave the Greek System with him almost every weekend and trek over to the Eastside to go home and visit our families and all of the people that love us.  Not a single one of my classes has been taught by a TA - I even went to my professor's book release last week.  I have been going to various Christian and Catholic worship places on campus and have joined a Bible study.  I make time to exercise almost every day.  My sorority provides me with friendships, a place to live, food, a comfortable home, and fun events...however I would never describe myself, nor would anyone else, as a "sorority girl".

The interesting thing is - all of those occurrences which I described above could have happened.  They didn't because of the choices I made.  I had a plethora of information presented to me before I attended UW, and many choices, good and bad, presented to me upon arrival.  I chose to value health, love, friendships, academics, relationships, family, and loyalty.

Life comes down to choices.  No one can make you do anything.  I have definitely grown since the beginning of school, but I have made the choice to stay true to myself and to be the person that I want to be.

In Animal Planet, I have been presented with a LOT of information.  At first, I thought that I had to become vegetarian because I was taking the class and because everyone else was also.  So I did, and have not eaten any meat since the beginning of the quarter with the exception of a tuna sandwich, a sushi dinner, and a few morsels of pork I couldn't fish out in my mom's homemade pork fried rice.  I have found it relatively easy to be vegetarian for the most part.  I actually kind of like it - meat doesn't even really taste good anymore (I felt pretty sick after I ate sushi).

However, it is hard for me to abstain from consuming meat altogether.  When I ate the tunafish sandwich, it was because my boyfriend's mom made me one for lunch.  When I had a sushi dinner, it was because my friend came into town from California and one of her top priorities was going to sushi with me.  When I ate a bit of pork, it was because it would have taken me an extremely long time to separate the tiny slivers of pork from the sticky fried rice.

Are these acts selfish?  Is it selfish that I sometimes put convenience over vegetarianism?  I think one could argue yes.  But I see my own personal vegetarianism as moderation.  It's a personal choice - I am making an effort to eat significantly less meat.  If I slip up sometimes, I don't see that as a particularly awful action.  The main point for me is that I am making a conscious effort to lower my meat intake for animal welfare, economic, environmental and health reasons.

I have been presented with all of this information regarding eating animals from an interdisciplinary lens.  I am also surrounded by a culture that rewards eating meat, that centers around eating meat.  It is my job to make a choice.  No one can make me do anything.  Where I am at in my life right now, I choose vegetarianism in moderation.  I believe that that choice stays true to who I am.  I care a lot about animals and the environment and my health and the health of others.  But occasionally, I choose to give other things a temporarily higher value like convenience, social comfort, and time because sometimes they mean more to me personally in a particular circumstance.  I hope that doesn't mean that I'm a horrible person.

I am going to be exposed to a lot in my lifetime - a lot of people, a lot of opportunities, a lot of ideas - and it is my job to decide, to choose, how they will impact my life and furthermore how I will use them to impact the lives of others.  I'm happy with what I've done so far.