END ANIMAL CRUELTY - THE BEGINNING

I have always had a soft spot for animals, especially furry ones. I knew that as a child. I would always cry during animal movies with tragic endings. I can’t even remember how many times I cried when told the story of The Velveteen Rabbit (heck even while reading it myself). When I lost my 16-year old dog, Valiant, I never wanted to have a pet again because I couldn’t deal with the heartache of losing one. My colleague and fellow bunny lover Pearl told me best, “I am nicer to animals than people”.

When I was in Grade 4, I always ordered the Twin Burger (double patty) from Tropical Hut. That continued for years. In college, I craved the shredded TapSiLog from Rodics. When I started working, I started my love affair with Chicken Bacolod and it has been a very faithful relationship. Across the decades, through many restaurants, I would always look for Crispy Pata. And the sisig...

Clearly I have an unresolved dichotomy in my life (apart from some cholesterol and uric acid concerns on the side).

On the remaining 5/12th (seems like a good estimate) of my life, I want to resolve it by pursuing a crazy impossible vision: I want to end all forms of animal cruelty, starting with rabbits of course. I have no idea how. I don’t even know if I can resist the smell of grilled meat. I just know that it has to start by articulating the vision.

End all forms of animal cruelty

But why are we in this situation anyway? Let me share a quick story. I once had a chicken. Me being me, I loved the chicken. Then one day it disappeared. There was tinola on the table. I don’t think I was brave enough to ask, but I didn’t want to eat the tinola. You don’t imagine the cow or what it had to go through when you see a slab of steak. As ordinary people, we don’t really see what goes into the process of “steaking” a cow or “hot dogging” a pig. I will bet you very few would have the natural empathy to even wonder.

If you go back to my favorites list, you will see that I’m not even part of that few. But I’m going to change that.

I am scandalized that people kill for fur, that rabbits are considered meat, that dogs are beaten and eaten, that cows, chickens and pigs are herded under terrible conditions in trucks. The list is endless and it assaults my sensibilities. So lately, I’ve been exploring all these vegetarian options. In fact, I attended this Vege festival in Eastwood over the weekend.

Can I ever resist the scent of sisig? I honestly don’t know. But I know that if I’m ever going to achieve my vision, I’ve got to walk the walk (or at least make significant strides). The first battle is with myself.

Wish me luck!

If anyone wants to take an active part in this cause, please hit me up (privately). Let’s define active as non-lip service: money, time, effort. The whole shebang.