I talk to the kids a lot about our food choices, and why we eat certain things, and don't eat others. I want them to be educated on pesticide exposure, the dangerous chemicals in processed foods, the conditions that meat animals are or aren't raised in, and basically to know how to make choices that are good for the environment, their bodies, and the animals that they are consuming. I try to keep it age appropriate, especially with Rowan since she is so young. Killian I speak a little more freely with, and while he knows that processed foods and non-organic fruits and veggies aren't good for him, he is a whole lot more concerned with the health and happiness of the animals that end up on his plate. I have described a bit about factory farms to him, and the deplorable conditions that the animals are forced to live in. I have briefly told him about the slaughtering process that the animals are put through, and its a tough subject for both of our animal loving hearts to imagine. You know that old saying - if slaughterhouses were made of glass, everyone would be a vegetarian...its probably true. Unfortunately, the almighty dollar usually wins out, and as long as the meat is cheap and plentiful, most people don't really care how it gets to their place.
But I do, and I want my children to also. So instead of sticking our heads in the proverbial sand....we talk. A lot. About the differences between factory and family farms, about voting with our dollars, and about supporting the farms that raise animals in a way that we believe is right. We spend time on farms, and we talk about what we see there, what kind of lives the animals have, and if they have enough space and look happy. He cracked me up a few months ago when he got a Harry Potter Lego set of Ron Weasleys house that included a little Lego pig and a small area off the house built for a pigpen. He showed me the tiny space, and said "Look at that mom, the Weasleys didn't give their pig nearly enough room. When I get this built, I am going to let my pig free range instead". Never mind that it was a little plastic pig. He saw something that he knew was wrong, and set out to change it, even if it was just in in play, and only in his imagination.
The reason for this post is a drawing that I found in Killian's backpack the other day:
While bomber planes and tanks may never be out to destroy the factory farms dotting our country, I applaud the sentiment behind what he drew. These are the moments when I realize that what we talk about is sinking in, that he is hearing what I am saying and applying it to life in whatever ways a 10 year old can. And that makes me feel pretty darn proud of my boy, and hopeful for the difference that we can make together.
But I do, and I want my children to also. So instead of sticking our heads in the proverbial sand....we talk. A lot. About the differences between factory and family farms, about voting with our dollars, and about supporting the farms that raise animals in a way that we believe is right. We spend time on farms, and we talk about what we see there, what kind of lives the animals have, and if they have enough space and look happy. He cracked me up a few months ago when he got a Harry Potter Lego set of Ron Weasleys house that included a little Lego pig and a small area off the house built for a pigpen. He showed me the tiny space, and said "Look at that mom, the Weasleys didn't give their pig nearly enough room. When I get this built, I am going to let my pig free range instead". Never mind that it was a little plastic pig. He saw something that he knew was wrong, and set out to change it, even if it was just in in play, and only in his imagination.
The reason for this post is a drawing that I found in Killian's backpack the other day:
While bomber planes and tanks may never be out to destroy the factory farms dotting our country, I applaud the sentiment behind what he drew. These are the moments when I realize that what we talk about is sinking in, that he is hearing what I am saying and applying it to life in whatever ways a 10 year old can. And that makes me feel pretty darn proud of my boy, and hopeful for the difference that we can make together.