Doesn’t it feel good to start afresh? As we box up our memories of 2019 and put them away with the Christmas decorations, I wonder how many people will be facing big changes at the beginning of this new year. For those of us that follow the tradition of making New Year’s resolutions, January has become the birthplace of new routines and rituals; a time where we dust off our running shoes, take up a new hobby or set more time aside for the people that we love. Two years ago, in January 2018, I began the only resolution I have ever really stuck to: being vegan.
The decision was long overdue; after years of guiltily avoiding conversations about the origins of my food and making half-hearted proclamations of love towards species whose slaughter I was actively paying for, I decided it was finally time to put my money where my mouth was. My diet changed overnight, followed closely by my cosmetics and household products, and then my clothing — as each of my non-vegan possessions wore out, they were replaced with cruelty-free alternatives. I worked to make my home and body compassionate spaces. I reassured my friends and family that, yes, I really was going to stick to this ‘veganism thing’. And, two years later, here I am — still sticking to it.