One Year, Mostly Vegan

~ Heidi

As much as I love cheese, who ever thought I would have ‘vegan’ associated with me? Not me, that’s for sure. And certainly not for a year and counting.

My parents grew up on dairy farms. My cousins and uncles still operate dairy farms. My grandma used to go out to the barn and dip the milk pail in the tank before meals. Dairy products are practically part of my genetic predisposition. There’s not much that would make me give up gouda and brie. But my brother is a pretty good excuse.

He was diagnosed with classic Hodgkin’s lymphoma a little over a year ago. Devastated = understatement. There wasn’t a darn thing I could do to help him. As a fixer, I hated just having to sit on the sidelines. And watch. We started doing research, lots of research. We found that there were some pretty compelling arguments for eating a whole-foods, plant-based diet (ie vegan) as a cancer fighting tool. Yes!! I could do something. I could become a vegan to support my brother.

The first time I went the grocery store after deciding to change what I ate, I wandered in circles for almost an hour. I had no idea what to buy. I normally survived on milk, cheese, eggs, and yogurt – I never ate much meat anyway. But suddenly, all my food staples were off the table – literally. I think I settled on rice and beans. I think I even ate that for a few weeks. And you know, at first, it was hard work. Trying to figure out how to bake without butter and eggs. How to make things taste good without chicken stock or grated cheese. Figuring out how to eat practically became a part-time job. But after a few months, it got easier. I felt good. I ran a half-marathon. I was eating way better than I ever had on my own.

Though my brother is cancer free now (whoo-hoo!!) I’ve stuck with the vegan diet. Why ‘mostly vegan’? Because I allow myself some grace in the matter. I switched to a vegan diet for my health. And really, all you have to do is watch Food Inc. and you never want to eat meat again. But, if I’m a guest at someone’s home or invited to dinner where they don’t have vegan options- I’ll have a little cheese. Or an egg. Or I’ll have some fish sauce in my Thai dish.  But I feel good, and I know I’m doing something good for myself – so I’m sticking to it.

Here are some of my favorite websites and vegan chefs:

Now, no excuses. Get started!