I have been doing ‘veganuary’ and I have to say that it is very much fun. I also try not to use processed food so I haven’t eaten vegan meats either but I very much enjoy experimenting plant-based ingredients.
We have been urged to turn vegetarian/vegan for animal welfare and sustainability because these challenges must be tackled immediately. However I wonder if we had to take these drastic measures had we kept everything in moderation (or modest by our current standard) in the past.
I still remember my childhood when a steak dinner was only for birthdays and Christmas. Only in late 80’s when the economy started booming, my family started having these ‘feasts’ more often. I imagine it must have been more or less the same all over the world regardless of culinary culture. For centuries in every culture we stuck with bread/noodle/rice/potatoes as staple food daily. And back then, there was clear line between ‘normal days’ and ‘special days’ It waa the same for clothing. We would wear modest, practical items on normal days to get on with routines and on special days, we’d get to wear special things like velvet dresses and Mary Jane leather pumps. Such special clothing were associated with special occasions and excitement and happiness which comes with it. It is however not to say that the normal days were boring. We try to be productive and efficient while looking forward to the special days.
Our old style way of living allowed us to enjoy excitement of special days and find meanings in what we do on normal days. The contrast is the very thing that makes each part of our life unique and keeps us free from endless cycle of wanting more, more and more.
Endless pursue for materialistic matters and pleasure which comes with it ( I said pleasure, not happiness) which started in 70’s/80’s in some part of the world has brought us excess of everything.
Everyday became party-like and whoever wants to remain sober and get on with daily life was considered boring. For decades there has no longer been contrast between ‘normal’ and ‘special’ and we have been trapped in spiral of materialistic pursuant.
Odd 50 years later than this cycle started, I think that we need to be aware that the global issues that we now have to tackle are the result of our endless desire for excess rather than cherishing the contrast of two sides of our lives (normal day vs special days) in healthy balance. Veganism is of course an ideal lifestyle in an attempt to try and make up for the shameless indulgence that we have had past 50 years. Meanwhile as far as the clothing is concerned, it’s all good to upcycle/recycle/thrift as a last resort or symbolism for social media but unfortunately it does not bring material result. We all have to question why there is so much to be recycled in the first place. When we only needed only functional clothing during work days, something a little nicer for weekend outing and formal wears for special occasions, we wouldn’t have needed that much to enjoy different types of clothing and even look forward to wearing your ‘special piece’ or associate good memories to particular clothing items.
Looking into cultural/industrial history to determine where the problem came from is important to effectively tackle them, rather swiftly. That’s what I was reminded of after my veganuary experience.
