I want to introduce myself as a mom, mom of Sohan (7 yrs) and Sonith (4 yrs).
I love them beyond words can describe.
This blog isn't about me. It is about Sohan and his wish that he so wants to come true.Sohan is a great animal lover, very soft hearted and has always shown empathy for any kind of suffering. He has always been matured and poses questions beyond his age.
I love them beyond words can describe.
This blog isn't about me. It is about Sohan and his wish that he so wants to come true.Sohan is a great animal lover, very soft hearted and has always shown empathy for any kind of suffering. He has always been matured and poses questions beyond his age.
Recently he started questioning about "why are we killing animals".
I wasn't sure where he was heading. I answered saying there are people out there who do bad stuff and killing is bad. He said "you are bad too".I said I have never killed any animal and his response was "yes you do,you eat meat". I kind of knew where he was heading and being a non vegetarian since childhood, who always offered and believed meat and seafood is good for protien, tried to talk him out saying I don't kill but buy the chicken from the store and went on talking about, it is okay to have chicken for protien which is vital to the body etc.
The discussion went on couple of days and every time I offered him chicken which he by the way loved to eat and chicken biryani (Chicken with rice) was his favourite dish, he rejects it now saying that he do not want to kill animals and wouldn't want to eat any meat.I used my authority as a mom and forced him many times bribing or telling him he would loose tv time if he wouldn't eat. On a particular day, I used my mommy skills again and offered him chicken for dinner which ended up in questions and answers going back and forth.I tried telling him about food chain, how we are playing a role and how sharks and whales which are his favourite animals eat smaller fish to survive.
His reponse instantly was "Those animals do not have a choice and they cannot survive eating plants, more than that they cannot think like us humans."
That was it for me. His response took me over.It felt so right when it came from an innocent 7 yr old making such logical statements with lot of love for the animals.
I instantly told him he could give up on meat if he wishes to.
That was the day he stopped eating any kind of meat.His wish wasn't just about him and kept on talking about why are we killing animals for food.Another day he said, why can't people give up on meat.I told him it could be hard for someone, so used to some kind of food, to give up and his response was "I gave up, I loved chicken biryani."
He went on saying,
"I wish people could give up meat atleast one day a week and we could save many animals."
That was an innocent wish and felt giving up for one day in a week isn't a big deal.
I being a non vegetarian, it was hard to make a commitment but instantly felt I should be the first one to make his wish of giving up for one day, come true. I gave up meat on wednesdays and promised myself I will substitute my diet on Veggie days with enough protien and healthy veggie diet.
Would you join the effort to make Sohan's wish come true.
Would you give up meat for one day a week?
Needless to say you would be saving life to some degree for sure
and would definetly make Sohan's wish come true.
very inspiring.
ReplyDeletesohan, ur mommy is very proud of u. i will try spreading ur one-day-a-week-veggie message.
It's so inspiring to know that a Seven year kid thinks so big and i'm very proud to say that he's my nephew. That's a great initiative from your end sister. I would like to join the club and to have company I shall also stop having non-vegetarian on Wednesdays. This is a promise to my dear Sohan.
ReplyDeleteSohan,
ReplyDeleteIt is really inspiring thinking. Also, eating vegitarian food is more healthy for us. This blog should add more info about vegitarianism, and help turn more meat eaters into vegitarins.
Regards,
Bala
I had the same feelings wheh i used to be a kid. Somewhere my logical part took over and I figured plant also have life just becuse they can't cry and shout but i know somewhere they have feelings too. Analyzing this i figured to be a true vegetarin you have to eat like the jain monks/vashinavites used to eat only fallen fruit or dry grass which is highly impractical. So here i am an omnivore by a logical choice .
ReplyDelete- Rahul Zutshi
Rahul, Looks like Sohan's wish is to request omnivore's like you to give up eating meat on one day and not toally turning into Vegetarians. One day in a week could still reduce meat consumption to some degree, eventually saving animals. Please join the club if you think you could make it.
ReplyDeleteRahul, Most of us are omnivore's but the degree to which we are killing animals for food
ReplyDeletehas gone beyond imagination. Giving up for one day is an effort to bring the degree of slaughter to some extent if not totally.
Srujana.
Kids are born with a mind as innocent as a clean slate.. sadly, they grow up! :)
ReplyDeleteSrujana, how about this -> Each gallon of gasoline that we burn releases roughly 20 pounds of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. I don't know exactly how many animals (and plants) of all kinds that kills. For the sake of those animals, would you take public transportation one day per week? I am not asking you to give up driving.. but to just use public transportation one day per week.
I think people are working a great deal to solve the global warming issues caused by gasoline etc and I think we are moving in right direction of giving up gasoline eventually. This was also another question posed by Sohan to me this week. He is now into global warming and was asking why are we driving cars when it causing damage to earth. I told him giving up cars is not the direction we take but to figure out a way to build cars that could run without gasoline and save the damage.
ReplyDeleteKids are born with clean slate but our job is to tell them that world is what we people have created, good or bad and his duty or our duty as people as we grow is to see how to make world a better place and not to sit idle and find reasons to fit to the world as it is.
Srujana.
I also would like to add that giving up one day is to bring the animal slaughter down but if we could get rid of animal slaughter completely and humanity gives up on meat, that would be ideal. I live in practical world and wishing world to be ideal isn't practical. So if not completely giving up meat, lets atleast get started with one day in a week.
ReplyDeleteMeat Meat Meat........Meeeeat
ReplyDeleteWhen I want you.......I shall savour you
When I wanted you.... I always savoured you and then.......... :)
Whenever I really wanted you....I have over eaten you and now.... :(
When I need...only then I shall eat you
Meat Meat Meat......... Less Meeeeeat
Less is better than more.
Stand up for Sohan's Wish
@Anonymous (the one with a suggestion to use public transportation): Let's not get off topic here...There are many ways to save animals, and little Sohan has chosen one way to do it. If you can't give up meat once a week, then don't. Simple as that...
ReplyDeleteIf you can't appreciate the little kid's sincere request, then just stay quiet!!
@Srujana: What an amazing, mature request!! yes, kids grow up and other factors may change their reasoning...You are doing great by indulging his humble request!!
I don't eat meat anyways, so this is easy for me :)
@Girl Next Door: I don't intend to change the topic, but to take a step back and look at a broader set of issues. Is the issue really about saving animals or about Sohan's wish? I believe it's the former. Saving animals by not eating them, but at the same time by letting them die by depriving them of their natural habitat.. is a meaningless pursuit.
ReplyDelete@Srujana: Am glad Sohan is thinking about global warming as well. He better be, coz he'll see a much warmer Earth than our generation will see.
Now that I've been accused of going off the topic, why don't I really go off the topic? Could you ask Sohan if he has heard that the world would come to an end by 2012? It's a Nostradamus prediction - check the History Channel. So does Sohan have any other wishes, considering 2012 is not that far away?
@Anonymous: If you are so concerned about animals deprived of natural habitat, do something about it.
ReplyDelete@Anonymous: What are youdoing? There is SO much to do...ONE STEP at a time! Anyways, stop being such a troll...
ReplyDeleteboth are good points. It always run into my mind that why people killing the animals? I wish sohan can change atleast a few people's mind. For global warming, if we can compromise --we can always go for public commute.
ReplyDelete