One of my favorite things to do is listen to Richard Green on Air America Radio on Monday nights. Richard is a big animal lover, a sweet and kind, progressive soul. A few weeks ago one of his guests was Heather Mills McCartney, who of course has had a lot of bad publicity for marrying and divorcing Paul McCartney, whom I really love and respect. Too often when celebrities divorce or split, we humans get a sports team mentality and take a side, just like at a baseball game. How many times have you heard, "I'm on Jen's side" or "I'm on Angelina's side"? It just gets silly. It reminds me also, of how we as humans have to label and categorize each other, for example into "cat people" and "dog people". DUH! I like cats and dogs BOTH, and I don't think anyone should feel squeezed into liking one animal or one person over another. There's enough love to go around for all people and creatures. There's my Sunday sermon. Now, back to Heather Mills McCartney.
This woman is truly a voice for many: amputees, those who live near landmines and who would come in contact with them and also...animals...all animals, not just the ones more likely to be considered "pets". I was impressed with Heather's story of becoming vegan. She was in the hospital at the time, trying to heal from the horrible accident which cost her part of a leg. The infection from her leg injury kept getting worse and she was afraid she would have to lose even more of it, but a friend convinced her to go on a vegan diet and it proved to be very detoxifying, and the infection healed.
I looked up Heather's website today, and decided to put part of it here for you. If you want to go to it, the address is http://www.heathermills.org/. If you type dot com, you will get the site of a brunette singer named Heather Mills. :)
"Heather's personal experience as an amputee and the positive manner in which she dealt with her recovery gives Heather a unique insight and affinity with those who themselves have lived through a tragic experience. Heather voluntarily counsels people from around the world who have lost limbs in accidents, through illness, natural disasters and terrorist atrocities. Her personal advice, determination and commitment help them and their families realise that they can continue to lead rich and fulfilling lives despite their injuries. It was in this spirit that Heather recently appeared on the Hit US Television show Dancing with the Stars proving this point in spectacular cart wheeling style.
Heather donated all of her proceeds from the show to Viva!, (Vegetarians International Voice for Animals) to which Heather is a committed Patron and activist.
Heather now lives purely on a plant based food diet as she is painfully aware of the brutal treatment of factory farmed animals in the UK and around the world.
Her interest in the benefits of holistic nutrition was first stimulated in 1994 when a strictly organic plant based raw diet healed a persistent infection in her leg where prescribed medicine had failed.
Fighting for the humane treatment of animals is now at the forefront of Heather’s campaigning. She has received praise by both Viva! and Peta for her hands on approach helping to fight the animal cause.
Heather recently joined a covert investigation at a pig breeding unit with Viva! to film the cruelty that breeding sows have to endure, and it generated massive publicity to raise awareness of the terrible treatment of these poor creatures."
Linda McCartney, Paul's first wife, said "If slaughterhouses had glass walls we'd all be vegetarians."
I can't help noticing the sharp contrast between all of this and Julia Child's way of thinking. When asked the secret of her longevity, Julia replied "red meat and gin". There's no way she could have really known the secret to her longevity, since she wasn't a doctor or a scientist, of course. My bet is that the secret to her longevity was the fact that she was happy and that she had all the money she needed. Happiness tends to extend life, as long as one can avoid war zones and moving cars.
Julia was from the old school, which still says we need meat in order to live and that meat is the only good source of protein. She probably also believed that animals don't have the same physical feelings of pain that we humans do, or she wouldn't have been able, with a clear conscience, to kill a lobster with a knife, or in a microwave. (Yes, she did.) And if Julie weren't from that "old school" she would have released that lobster from the bag as it stared at her from the back seat of her car. (In the near future, I'll comment on the big lobster story involving Rush Limbaugh, Mary Tyler Moore and Ellen Degeneres.) :)
A while before I became veg, I had a friend in grad school who was, and I told her "I'd like to be vegetarian, but I'd really miss meat." She asked me, "Is it the meat you'd miss, or the way it's prepared?"
A valid question. Most meat is totally bland without seasonings, marinades and sauces...or the great (but dangerous) taste of charcoal. What Julia Child offers us in Mastering the Art of French Cooking, is pages and pages of wonderful ways to prepare "meat" and veggies. I will continue to research, use and modify those for our enjoyment.
Have a peaceful Sunday,
Bev
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