As a sistah from Inglewood, I’m often asked how I can dare pass up fried chicken, neck bones, or that plump turkey on the holidays. I’ve been hesitant to post this because there’s no quick way to answer. So alas here’s the story.
When I was seven-years-old, I found out my mom’s friend was a vegetarian and she seemed super cool to me. Years later, I found out my 9th grade health teacher was vegetarian and she was extremely energetic. Because of these two women, I’ve been very interested in the importance of maintaining optimal health. So at the age of 14, I stopped eating red meat. Like many Americans, I really thought a diet of poultry and seafood was oh so healthy, so I ate this way for years. But for some reason I couldn’t get rid of a lil’ pouch on my belly no matter how much I exercised. In 1999, as I began to study holistic healing, I learned some amazing facts: even chicken and fish are harmful because human beings were not designed to be carnivores.
Our teeth and intestines prove that. And our poor health confirms it! Did you know?…
More Black people have died from degenerative diseases than were killed during the entire slave trade?!?
We have gotten too comfortable with losing our elders to health problems and mistakenly calling it “old age”.
Heart attacks, strokes, cancer, diabetes, hypertension, osteoporosis, gingivitis, obesity, dementia, high cholesterol, fatigue, pneumonia, the flu .¨ ALL diseases are preventable! We give ourselves these diseases with what we put in and on our bodies. Animal flesh, animal secretions (dairy), chemicals, and negative thoughts are what create disharmony in our bodies. We’re the only animal in the kingdom that drinks the milk of another species. We eat mostly chemicals. No wonder 1 in 3 Americans will acquire some form of cancer in their lifetime.
My grandparents on both sides are no longer living. Most of my aunts and uncles are gone. My cousins are sick. My own father was on dialysis for 10 years before his recent kidney transplant.
Di-ease. Disease. Disease. I’m sure you have some relatives that were on 12 different medications for several years before they suffered some slow unsightly death. It’s the American way! I’ve decided to break the cycle.
In August of 2000 I did The Master Cleanse (only cayenne/maple/lemonade) for 10 days. When I ended my fast, I decided to only fill my temple with foods that would edify me.
I’ve been a vegan/vegetarian ever since. Afterall, was there an ice cream parlor, steakhouse, or mini bar in the Garden of Eden? I believe health is wealth. What good is a trillion dollars if you can’t get out of bed to enjoy it?
Trust me: I was raised on eating everything “from the roota to the toota”, so I know what I’m missing. I love food that tastes great just like you do. But I’ve found delicious vegan substitutes so that I can still eat what I was raised on. There are vegan versions of bacon, sausage patties, hamburgers, hot dogs, Italian sausage, cheese, milk, butter, taco meat, pate, chicken nuggets, sliced lunch meat, turkey roast, even BBQ ribs. My favorite meal is vegan soul food. Just switch the ingredients of your favorite recipes, enjoy, and see how you start to feel.
