I’ve noticed that there are parts of my life that I pursued and other parts that pursued me. Veganism is something that followed me years before I was ever ready to entertain the idea of a plant-based diet. Though I’m sure I was passed a PETA flyer or two in Texas where I grew up, it was never something that grabbed my attention until after I graduated college and moved to LA. In 2007 I listened to a radio show by Gary Null. He shared some of his research on how eating a primarily plant-based diet could reverse all kinds of health issues, restore energy, and overall was the best diet for humans. He then went into graphic detail on the meat industry and how awful it is. That was the first time I was really exposed to information like this.
After hearing that radio show I immediately transitioned to vegetarian and remained one for 4 years. Around my 4-year mark I went through one of the biggest transitions of my life and I started to eat anything and everything again. Eating was no longer about nourishment, nor was it about compassion. I began to use it in unhealthy ways to medicate and self-indulge. It’s not surprising that this spiral led me to a place where I no longer recognized myself. Not only had I gained 40 pounds and health complications by the end of it all, I was generally living in this space of uncertainty.
It would take another 2 years of trying and failing before I faced that the path carved out for me was eating a plant-based diet. I decided to do a month long “Vegan Challenge” for a health website I was writing for. And at the same time I was really digging deep into my spiritual life. You see, that’s the key to all of this for me. I’ve always been a very spiritual person; in fact I wanted to be a nun as a little girl. So during this month long “Vegan Challenge” I was also reading about Daniel in the Bible. He abstained from meat and alcohol while those around him indulged in everything but by the end of 10 days he was stronger and wiser than them all. This month long challenge then led me to other scriptures and spiritual readings from saints, mystics, and the likes that followed a plant-based diet. It was comforting because I initially felt that I wouldn’t fit into my spiritual community as a vegan nor would I fit into the vegan community as a Christian.
I decided to make a video, “Where Are the Christian Vegans” in hopes of seeking a community. It’s been nearly 2 years since I posted it and I continue to get comments from people saying that their faith led them to follow a plant-based diet. I now realize that I’m not alone. Every community has different pockets to it and this is what can make it wonderful. As I continue to study both my faith and veganism I’m so happy to find how often they overlap in the lives of influencers who came before me. My path is one of love and this way of living and eating fits perfectly into it.
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