Sending everyone love and blessings for the Christmas holidays. May your new year be filled with love, peace, laughter and all-things vegan.
Cute card from crueltyfreeshop.com.au
Now Santa’s letter is on its way, I’m shifting my focus to my beautiful family, whom I’m sure would love to gift me all sorts of wonderful things this Christmas…
Before you go shopping for those (quite possibly) not-so-vegan goodies Mum and Dad, I’d like to offer some wee suggestions of my own: Firstly, forget “stuff”. There aren’t any material things I’m really lusting after … oh, hang on, I’ll gladly accept a Vita Mix blender if you feel like a splurge … but I digress … stuff, is well, just stuff. It clogs the mind and the planet, and to be honest, I’d rather leave it on the store shelves.
Christmas is about giving, that’s true. But gift giving ought to be re-thought. It’s about so much more than making those big chain stores richer. This time of year is about appreciation. About celebrating. Not about how much someone spent or whether the gifted item comes wrapped in a Tiffany bow. A gift can be the smallest thing. A word. A gesture. A batch of homemade vegan cookies (see option 5).
To help you out this Christmas, my dear loved ones, I’ve put together this little list to help you out should you insist on giving me a present this year.
Option 1 – Save an animal’s life. Adopt a pet. Buying from pet stores at Christmas means loving animals are, more often than not, left homeless and on death row. Find out more here.
Option 2 – Donate money to The Vegetarian Charity, a UK-based global organisation that helps needy vegans around the world and assists with poverty relief. Also consider donating to the Vegetarian and Vegan Foundation, which helps to educate about the link between diet and health.
Option 3 – There are some great books I’d love to add to my bookshelf, including The Kind Diet by Alicia Silverstone and Eating Animals by Jonathan Safran Foer. Secondhand copies will do just the trick.
Option 4 – A handmade card made from bits and pieces you find around the home will make for a perfect Christmas gift. Otherwise, an e-card will mean just as much and help save some trees too.
Option 5 - You know how much I love biscuits (ie cookies). I’ll be one happy vegan if you whip me up a batch of these. If you’re stuck for how to wrap them, a recycled jar with a re-used bow will be just lovely, indeed.
Joanna Krupa helps get the Christmas message across for PETA
As Christmas day nears, I’ve been thinking about jolly ol’ Santa and his love for milk and cookies … how his turning vegan could be the biggest gift to vegan activists everywhere.
Imagine the influence he’d have. Children worldwide would be begging their parents for freshly-made almond milk with a side of raw vegan truffle balls, forget the cows, thank you very much.
So, without further ado, here is my letter to Santa this year—10 reasons he should go vegan. I just hope he gets it on time…
1. Your cholesterol levels, Santa, would be back to normal. No more need for those pesky GP visits and poisonous pharmaceuticals;
2. Your energy levels would skyrocket, especially if you adopt a mostly raw diet. Raw, live foods are packed with enzymes, which are the givers of life. Kids everywhere want to see you around for a long time to come. Eating raw and vegan is healthy for you, animals and the planet.
3. Santa, I know you love animals. What bigger gift could you give to them than not eating or wearing them?
4. I don’t mean to be rude, Santa, but being overweight is a serious risk to your health. Did you know tummy fat raises your risk for high blood cholesterol by about 50 percent? A healthy vegan diet will have you at your optimal weight in no time.
5. Most cookies are laden with butter and processed sugar. Many of the mass-produced kind are even worse, with ingredients made up of numbers and boasting names impossible to pronounce. Santa, do you know where your cookies came from?
6. Drinking cows milk has been linked to all sorts of dis-eases, including asthma, osteoporosis, heart disease, diabetes and more. Making milk from nuts is a cinch and doesn’t require harming animals or using massive amounts of the earth’s energy.
7. I hate to be the one to break it to you Santa, but that big fur collar that keeps you warm as you deliver your presents once belonged to real, live animals — defenseless creatures who were tortured and skinned without a second thought. I’ve also been told that fur has formaldehyde in it, which has been known to cause cancers. I don’t want you getting sick, Santa.
8. I know eating on the run must be tempting to a busy man like you, Santa. But I think you should know that fast food meats have thousands of additives that are addictive and fattening. Much of the meat on menus today are also full of pesticides and hormones.
9. Bacon and pork may be tempting, but did you know that pigs are more intelligent than dogs? Word has it they are intelligent as a three year old. I know you’d never eat a three year old, would you, Santa?
10. Those fancy leather seats in your sleigh may be comfy Santa, but did you know how many cows died to make them? If you compare your ride to the average Mercedes Benz, my guess is around seven.
So Santa, if you’re reading this, I urge you to take the pledge. Go vegan in 2010. Imagine the energy you’d have delivering presents next year. Those rosy cheeks would have a truly healthy glow, Mrs Claus could learn new culinary skills, whipping up raw vegan recipes to share with the elves. I’m certain Rudolph would be grateful too, knowing for certain he won’t be re-named venison when it’s time for retirement.
And to PETA, I think I’m onto something. I’ll let you take it from here.
