THE BUSIEST FOOD TRUCK WAS THE VEGAN ONE

Thinking about outreach and shifting perception. I was at a Christmas gift market earlier today and there were maybe eight or so food trucks there. The usual stuff, cider, cotton candy... but guess what the busiest food truck was? A vegan one. They made burgers, wraps, poutine, tacos - all vegan. I tried a tofu/greens/ sriracha mayo wrap. SO GOOD.

The busiest food truck was the vegan one. This is so promising. It also speaks to how good the food tastes. This wasn't a cheap "fast food" type of vegan, either - it was really decent (and yes, we paid for it, but it's worth it). This truck also already had a decent reputation. The man behind me (obviously a loyal fan) poked my back (I did not know him, and I was not impressed - please don't do this) to recommend which dish I should order. I'm glad the food truck has had no problems finding a vegan market!

It all points to the question I was thinking about, though - inside the veg community there can be a tendency (just like larger leftist politics, perhaps) to hairsplit and nitpick at each other because someone is still only "80%" of the way there (so they're not truly vegan yet), or because the guy who calls himself vegetarian is still eating fish one day a week.

Look. I get it. But let's not give such a hard time to those already walking the road with us, in the same direction. They're on their way. They've already done the hard work of that initial shift in their own thinking.

Let's each focus instead on people who are still 0% of the way. They're in denial, or obstinate, or happily going in the other direction. This is where we can make the most difference.

Additionally: this movement for ending animal suffering is about more than that - that's just the bare minimum. There's many layers and levels that support acknowledging non-humans for their full, intrinsic dignity and individuality - just like humans.

So it's great if you can inspire more people to start weaning themselves off animal meat and animal products. But maybe you can add a second line and finally start up that vegan cosmetics business you were thinking about (selling your soaps on Etsy), or maybe you also had the idea of writing that vegan cookbook, or running a plant-based food truck? And so on.

There are a lot of options, and you can get creative. We need to disrupt ourselves here and branch out into other dimensions of the overall goals.

That same love you have for your cats or dogs - keep trying to extend that to other beings. Not just cute farm animals.

If you've never liked reptiles (I get it), try to expand your sense of compassion there, too.

Do you know what I mean? What else can you do, in addition to no longer eating animal products? What have you been waiting to try? What kind of progress have you made this year?

#christmasmarket #foodtrucks #veganfoodtruck #veganfood #vegantakeout #sriracha #tofu #outreach #veganism #animalrights