THE GREAT VEGETARIAN PROJECT

Alright, it's been officially declared.

The boy who's been wavering for the past 3 years or so about whether or not his eating meat conflicts with his love for animals has put his foot down once and for all and decided that he is, in fact, going to become an "herbivore."

"An herbivore, babe?" I ask. "Not a vegetarian?"

"What's the difference," he's asks.

And after explaining to him that that meant he'd be eating only plants, algae, and bacteria, he quickly warmed up to the idea of full-fledged vegetarianism and the concept of not consuming any animal products AT ALL (now called veganism).

After a little more discussion about what all that would entail, and what exactly those sacrifices might be (like his two glasses of warm leche every morning, his hard-boiled eggs, his yogurt, and a complete and utter overhaul of his current wardrobe), he easily transitioned into a much more comfortable place and settled on lacto-ovo vegetarianism, which means, essentially, that egg and milk products are acceptable because you don't have kill a cow or a chicken to get them.

And really, once they found out that they didn't have to cut out mac 'n' cheese, PBnJs, bean and cheese burritos, or cheese pizza, they were ALL. FOR. IT!!!

Having successfully recruited his sister into the cause with little to no effort whatsoever, he calls out at me through the rearview mirror and asks me if I'll do it with him, too?

And it's not like it's a huge stretch from where we're at already. The kids and I mostly eat fish and shrimp with our meals anyway. It's mostly Mommy, our die-hard Texas/Okie girl, and truly a hardcore carnivore, who would literally just burst into a pile of ash if we pulled the meat proteins from her diet. So, it looks like it'll just be the three of us officially kicking off The Great Vegetarian Project.

[Aside: to make this an easier transition for all, I'm thinking I'll also be consuming their daily allowance of red wine and sweets.]

So then I tried to explain to them that it's more than just a one-meal thing. That it's a commitment, and I don't want them to take it too lightly. I want them to understand, as much as possible, the why's and how's (apologies for the inappropriate use of greengrocers' apostrophes, Brian!). And I want them to be (somewhat) serious about their reasons and the choices they're making, so that it becomes a lifestyle and not a fad. So that it means something.

So, we'll see how this goes.

Dropping them off at school this morning, he demanded a bowlful of steamed veggies for lunch. Normally we pick up Mickey D's happy meals on Friday afternoons.

The true test is about to be borne in 3...2...1...