Lent - Show me the vegetables!
Every year for as long as I can remember, I have given up something for Lent.
I really enjoying testing myself in a way which will improve my health or life in general and Lent is a great reminder for me to that.
I get great satisfaction from completing a task like this successfully and enjoy the fact that other people are doing something similar at the same time as me.
Some years I have given up loads and others I have given up just a little. Sometimes I don’t give up anything at all but instead make a promise that I will do something specific like drink water or keep a room tidy.
For a while, I get a constant stomach flip every time I'm eating or drinking, worried that I've slipped up and eaten something I shouldn't have.
Although there have been slip ups (actual mistakes, not 'whoops I gave up chocolate but just ate an entire massive Dairy Milk), I have only failed once.
It was my final year at Staffordshire University and I must have been insane to add any pressure on top of the already looming Final Year Project. Sweets and soft drinks (and energy drinks!) carried me through those last few months and I'm not even mad about it.
One thing I am guilty of is replacing the thing I’ve given up with something equally as bad. Given up chocolate? Eat sweets! Given up biscuits? Eat cake!
This year I have decided to become vegetarian.
We have actually reduced the amount of meat we eat in the last 6 or so months but from Ash Wednesday onwards (the day after pancake day) I have been fully vegetarian. That’s no meat and no food which has animal products in (goodbye Haribo and parmesan cheese)
Why vegetarian?
Well, without getting all preachy on you (because no one wants that) I believe that the over consumption of meat is having a detrimental impact on the environment. I’m also not feeling great about eating living things. That about sums it up!
Usually after lent, despite my best intentions I get back into old habits pretty quickly but I'm hoping something about this year sticks. Thinking that I might be vegetarian forever feels like a bit of a stretch for now, but you never know. Maybe at the end of lent I will be in full vege mode and there to stay.
If anything I want to improve repertoire of vege meals and continue to see that a meat free life can be just as tasty as a meaty one!
If you have any hints or tips on Vegetarianism or any great recipes you think I should try, let me know below and i’ll keep you up to date on how I get on!