Tonia Kraakman on Unsplash
L is for Lamb so Soft and Sweet
A poem by Amanda Benham, from Brisbane, Australia
The Vegan: Maui’s First Vegan Restaurant
Gentle World's restaurant, The Vegan, was recently profiled in a vegan history piece on the blog Maui Vegan Life
Priscilla Du Preez | Unsplash
I Remember Going to the Barn at Night
The foundation under my privileged feet is ranching. The root reason why I was able to go to university, travel, and have never known hunger is that my family raised cattle. Beef put food on my table, even if I didn’t eat it. I know what modern farming practice entails.
Casey Horner/ Unsplash
Uniting the World
I have traveled 25 countries; most divided by color, race, and religion, but have found vegans uniting the world and bringing hope, peace, and harmony.
Sandra Suarez Ramos | Instagram
A Future we are Willing to Fight For
When I ask people to think about Art, most describe a specific work, such as a painting, a sculpture or a piece of design. But what most people fail to…
Laura Chouette | Unsplash
I Refuse to be Part of the Problem
I'm not proud of it, but my path to veganism was born of sheer vanity. One of the curses of designers is that we can value image above most other…
Ajmal K P / Unsplash
The Most Unexpected of Places
I attend a university, but my lessons come from all aspects of my surroundings, not just the classroom. My teachers come in a variety of species, each with wisdom to…
Karrel Christopher
Karrel Christopher Art
In 2012, I became vegan and embraced the role of sharing my artistic skills to advocate for all sentient beings. This was the turning point in my creative path. Creations were not only about how animals looked – but how they felt and what they had to say.
Barbara Jackson / Pixabay
Treading Peacefully Without Regret
I found my true soul when I became a vegan. Up to that point I had been practicing my spiritual path, but I was still living in a state of…
Pixabay
I Am Not a Tomb
(written by a vegan teen
in South Africa)
"We all live in a yellow submarine, yellow submarine, yellow submarine," excuse me, this is my alarm, I shall be early out of bed without any doubt. "Time for breakfast,"…
More Important to me Than Anything
While it may not seem that my parronthood and veganism are related, they are actually poignantly connected. The message of veganism is respect, love, and freedom for all the nonhuman animals whether in a slaughterhouse, marine park, laboratory, or pet store.
Andres Siimon | Unsplash
The Temple of Life
This is a story of how one hour changed my destiny. At 18 years old, I read a pocket-sized book called Arnold Ehret's Mucusless Diet Healing System. The book explained what…
Jeremy Thomas / Unsplash
From a Vegan Naturopath
Being committed to a vegan lifestyle, and as a qualified naturopath, I have been able to promote veganism as a superior healthy dietary choice. At the outset of my studies…
Pexels
A Place of Peace
I have been a gardener for most of my adult life, and a vegan gardener for over 30 years. I developed a love for the garden early on, as a…
Jo-Anne McArthur / We Animals Media
A Life Without Violence
Have you ever dreamed of freedom, justice and, overall, a life without violence, discrimination and hatred? This has been a question I have constantly asked myself from a very young age. As a woman born into a male dominant, misogynistic society, I always thought of myself as being a victim of unequal treatment...
Pexels
I’m a Vegan Athlete
I'm a vegan sportsperson. I regularly play a variety of sports and I run, sometimes competitively, and have done since I was a child, and I coach sport at a…
We Animals Media
I Will Not Give Up
I have been vegan for 10 years (and vegetarian for seven years prior to that). I became vegan for the animals as I believe that all animals have a right…
Boris Smokrovic / Unsplash
A World Restored
I knew that as long as there were people who perceived life this way, and talked about justice in its true form, there was hope in this world for other animals.
Ravi Sharma / Unsplash
Dawn of a New Day
Veganism changed my life’s path, and showed me the light that we all have burning inside us. Every day I think about what I can bring to this world to make it a better place. The root of all of these desires is truly from opening my eyes and making the first step in becoming vegan.
Felipe Portella / Unsplash
An Obvious Force for Good
There is, for better or worse, a righteousness associated with being vegan. Four years ago when I told people—good friends, even—that I had decided to become vegan, some replied with…
Jo-Anne McArthur / Unsplash
I Will Never Forget
Veganism is not about our health but theirs; it is about ethics, not food; about animal rights, not cupcakes. Since I became vegan I have seen many more animals suffer…
Thom Milkovic / Unsplash
Because I Must
I'm a writer. I write because I must. I've done so since I was a child; thirty years of putting words to paper (real or virtual), of extracting thoughts from…
Annie Spratt / Unsplash
Once I Knew, I Couldn’t Not Know
Growing up, I spent a few weeks during the summer at my family’s cottage in upstate New York. Nearby, there was an open dairy farm and petting zoo that I…
Jo-Anne McArthur / We Animals Media
You
I write as I feel the animal, the not-me, the you. You. Hen. Sitting there in your cage, I sense you in my veins, I see your bars from the…
Gentle World Hawaii
Using My Voice
Thank you for teaching me, Gentle World. You have grounded me in my morals, thoughts, and actions. I know the future of the planet's health relies on my generation. I will do my absolute best to ensure we set a new precedent of standards.
Gentle World Hawaii
The Best Experience of my Life
Gentle World taught me more than I can put into words and gave me a new perspective on life -- not just my life, but the life of everything and everyone around me. I'll carry that with me everywhere I go.
Jo-Anne McArthur / We Animals Media
My Biggest Passion
It was practically since the day I was born that I knew there were other species on this planet. Not that I had a concept of it, but I understood…
Gemma Evans / Unsplash
No Other Choice
Children are born with compassion, but are often taught to disregard animal suffering by their parents, educators and peers. My mother tells a story where she took 3-year-old me to…
The Peace I Needed
Although I was aware of it, you have made me connect with veganism in a different way. I'm going back home even more sure, convinced, and aware of my decision, as well as my responsibility and the impact that it can have in the future in the world.
Jo-Anne McArthur / We Animals Media
A New Way of Thinking and Living
35 years ago I went to see Gentle World when they were based in Florida. I was a full-on carnivore when I arrived with a truck full of guns, fishing gear, and animal skins and hides of every kind. The people at Gentle World gave me the opportunity to make the change fast and painless, and quite frankly I can’t imagine living any other way now.
A Transformational Experience
Visiting Gentle World is not just an educational opportunity to learn more about veganism and sustainability. It is a one-of-a-kind transformational experience into a higher life of peace, harmlessness, spirituality,…
Andrea Lightfoot / Unsplash
My Biggest Wish in Life
My journey into my love and fight for other animals started even before I was born, in a small town called Murska Sobota, Slovenia. For some reason, when my mom…
Gentle World Hawaii
Authenticity
One of the most enriching experiences in my life took place in Gentle World. A few months ago I arrived on the Big island of Hawaii, carrying my dreams in a small backpack, looking to learn more about veganism.
Olga Kravchuk / Unsplash
A Stand for Justice
One day in March 2007, when I was 13 years old, I decided to go vegan, simply because I knew it was the right thing to do. Why should I…
Judith Prins / Unsplash
A Natural Progression
As a man of logic and reasoning, it was an obvious choice for me to go into the sciences. I moved towards the fields of medicine. It seemed natural to…
Suzanne Tucker / Unsplash
Unlearning Speciesism
It's simple, really—once you respect the rights of others, how do you stop respecting them? Just like almost everyone else, my potential for compassion was hobbled at a young age.…
Luke Stackpoole / Unsplash
Veganism: Common Sense Waiting To Be Common
I have a T-shirt that says “I am vegan because I love life.” That is how simple it really is to me. I deeply love the idea that I can…
blagorodez / Freepik
The Golden Rule
Gentle World’s Angel Flinn teamed up with animal rights activist Craig Cline to create a compilation of Craig’s writings on the subject of The Golden Rule, as it relates to veganism.
Free Photos / Pixabay
I’m a Vegan Traveller
Ever since my childhood, when I would sit on my dad's lap and look through glossy coffee-table books full of photos of faraway places, I'd always wanted to explore the…
topntp26 / freepik
Dark Alleys, Bright Aisles
Not all abuse happens in dark alleys. Much unspeakable cruelty takes place in the brightly lit aisles where we purchase the flesh of animals, their eggs, their milk, their skin, their wool, their feathers, and their fur.
Jonathan Rados / Unsplash
Exploitation of Workers
In addition to the very real physical burden this industry places on the individuals who work within it, the psychological toll of working with individuals who are violently killed or about to be killed cannot be overestimated.
David Mark / Pixabay
I’m a Vegan Vet
I’m a vegan because I can save more lives and prevent more suffering by simply not supporting the killing of animals for food and fibre, etc., than I ever could simply by being a vet.
Vlad Chetan / Pexels
I Was Wrong
The following was written by Reddit user Nick Salamone and posted to the r/vegan subreddit. It is reproduced here with kind permission from the author.
Kat Jayne / Pexels
It’s the Golden Rule Thing to Do
I will always be vegan because “it's the Golden Rule thing to do.” This moral and ethical precept teaches us that we should behave toward others as we would have…
Anna Sulencka / Pixabay
I’m a Vegan Catholic
As I continue to work toward understanding and embracing a consistent life ethic, the philosophy behind veganism simply made sense within the context of my faith.
Alwin Kroon / Unsplash
A New Awareness
The following submission for Why I Will Always be Vegan was contributed by Salwa Maddad, Al-Sweida, As-Suwayda, from Syria.
wirestock / Freepik
Awakened
Now that I am awake, I cannot go back to sleep. Awakened from a culturally induced slumber, I have made a pledge to myself—but, more important, I have taken an…
jul14ka / Freepik
There is Hope
I grew up as a “normal” child. I used to like other animals just like the people around me. They were cute and fun to play with. During the summer…
wirestock / Freepik
A Moment of Awakening
It was New Year’s Day, 2013, a month after my 53rd birthday. On a whim, I made a resolution to go vegan, or so I thought; I now know it…
Free-Photos / Pixabay
This Is Who I Am
I once believed I was an animal lover, yet I had no idea what love really was. I never saw the cruelty I inflicted by what I ate, used or…
Pixabay
A Smile My Whole Body Feels
I had no idea how holistic of an experience this would be, and now I embark on this journey with a bigger, lighter heart. I leave feeling more connected to all worlds than ever before.
Nicolas DC / Unsplash
A Light Inside
I will always live vegan because, ever since the moment my eyes were opened to the horrors and atrocities of the culture of animal exploitation pervasive throughout our current global…
Gerd Altmann / Pixabay
My Only Certainty
They say that the only things that are certain in this life are death and taxes. My imagination begs to disagree. The philosopher in me has debated death—the form of…
tawatchai07 / Freepik
Living a Lie
I can say with conviction and without any hesitation that I will always be a vegan. I still remember very clearly when I became free from the brainwashing we are…
sophia gw hawaii
Who I Really Want To Be
One of our favorite visitors of 2020, Sophia was a reminder of what a beautiful experience it can be to share our vegan knowledge with those who are open to receiving it.
nestea06 / Freepik
Enrichment Rather Than Sacrifice
When thinking of Kazakhstan, most people probably associate it with wide landscapes, horse-riding nomads and yurts in a remote countryside. This is what it used to be hundreds of years…
David Edkins / Unsplash
The Least I Can Do
Since I was a little child, I have always loved animals—well, I thought I loved “all animals”, but in reality I only loved and respected dogs and cats. I ate…
ipopba / Freepik
The Ultimate Freedom
Merriam-Webster defines the word 'soul' as the immaterial essence, animating principle, or actuating cause of an individual life. The actuating cause of an individual life—what is veganism if not that…
Envato Library
Navigating the Vegan Aisles
It seems to be a golden period for those looking to make the transition to veganism, as we are witnessing a substantial transformation taking place in the consumer products industry.
Dawn
I told my friends, “I think it’s a vegan place... That should be interesting.” That night, I ordered chicken wings because I figured I’d better get some good food in beforehand.
Markus Spiske / Unsplash
Lessons from the Garden
Change is the only constant, and the garden proves that we need to prepare for and adapt to these changes. But that’s what the garden, and life, is all about — taking what we have learned, dusting off the dirt, and starting again.
Fabricio Macedo / Pixabay
No Going Back
I was brought up in a very carnivorous environment in Brazil. My father strictly made sure my brother and I ate all kinds of foods. I remember my brother crying,…
wirestock / Freepik
Inspiration from a Vegan Nurse
I consider becoming vegan a spiritual journey and I have enormous respect for the sacredness of life. To me, being vegan flows through to respecting and valuing all life and the earth.
Alison Burrell / Pexels
Reborn
There was a time when a girl, with her family, raised chickens. She trapped one or two to sell for money or dinner. She wove coconut leaves and made them…
Inés Castellano / Unsplash
A New Path
I did not know that drinking milk supports sexual violation, killing baby animals, and the suffering of pregnant cows. Part of me wanted to believe that milk does not cause any…
wirestock / Freepik
My Way Home
I grew up in South Africa and experienced a number of transformative, life-changing events at an early receptive age, like trying to bargain with a female witch doctor who worked…
photoangel / Freepik
Not a Second to Lose
I was raised to eat animals, just like most children in our society. I spent 58 years condemning sentient beings to lives of ruthless exploitation that would end in brutal…
Pexels / Pixabay
I Knew Something Wasn’t Right
For 25 years I had been living my life like most other people in my culture and society, consuming the flesh from other animals, their milk, their eggs, their honey,…
Envato Library
Pushing Through to Freedom
I will always be vegan: Because of the bear trapped in a tiny cage, continuously drained of the bile so prized by humans. The elephant whose family was shot so…
108motiongraphic / Freepik
The Only Way to Exist
There was a time when I was unconscious, wrapped up in superficial wants. My mind was fixed on my materialistic needs. I existed purely in a little bubble of simple…
Iva Rajović / Unsplash
To Restore the Promise of Life
Have you ever looked into the eyes of a sow? She is not the “mere animal” you think you know. She senses and smells your presence. She can see your silhouette cast against the light. She advances, timidly, and seeks your eyes. Her orbs measure you, depose your shield of solid convictions and seek the empathic spark that is dormant within you.
byrdyak stock / Freepik
To Make Life Truly Just
I was born into a fog. That hazy, dreary, fog surrounded me. Everyone around me was part of that same dark haze. So normal and right it seemed to be. I never questioned, never pondered, a non-murky life. I thought life was good, and fair, and just.
Lukas Hartmann / Pexels
To "The Conscientious Omnivores"
Special thanks to JoAnn Farb for allowing us to reproduce this article from her March 2015 newsletter.
Azerbaijan Stockers / freepik
DIY Fermented Foods: Healthy Sauerkraut
Sauerkraut has a whole range of benefits for anybody looking to optimize their health. As a side dish alongside any meal, sauerkraut is crunchy and tangy, and can be made with a range of different flavors.
olenakurashova / Freepik
10 Things You Should Know About Animal Testing
Most consumers would never suspect that many of the products they purchase on a regular basis have been tested on animals. However, one simply needs to stroll down the aisle of a local grocery store or pharmacy to be surrounded by companies that routinely conduct animal vivisection.
Steve Johnson / Pexels
Veganism & World Hunger
If all food crops were fed directly to humans instead of animals, around 70% more food would be added to the world’s supply, which would be enough to feed an additional four billion people. It is the production of animal-based foods that is one of the leading causes of world hunger.
cookie_studio / Freepik
The Yogic Path
One rarely avoids animal products to aspire to sainthood, but it may be true that saintliness is impossible to discuss without first cleansing the body and mind of needless suffering of sentient beings.
Freepik
What’s in a Word?
Instead of a philosophy and way of life that seeks to avoid the exploitation of nonhuman animals, veganism is viewed by many as a fad diet now - and often as one that allows the occasional consumption of products derived from other animals.
feelphotoz / Pixabay
Animal Bones in Sugar?
Sugar seems vegan at a glance; it comes from a plant after all. But when the natural sugars from the plant are refined in a factory, they are often filtered through bone char.
David Clode / Unsplash
The Power of Ahimsa
Prescribed by sages throughout history as the most effective way to temper the bestial nature in man, taking the vow of Ahimsa means resolving to refrain from causing any harm to any living creature.
tawatchai07 / freepik
A Beginner’s Guide to Traveling as a Vegan
As you travel to new places as a vegan, a bit of planning and forethought can help you overcome the small inconveniences you may encounter.
Norri Rainbow
Creating Magic…
My experiences here have kindled a new fire in me, so instead of story-telling I jumped right to the processing. What am I learning here? The questions keep coming…
Kirill Balobanov / Unsplash
You Can’t Return to Ignorance
On the one hand, the decision seemed pretty easy. On the other hand, my parents own a farm. They raise animals for meat, and my mum milks cows for a living. So, I had a big crisis on my hands about how to bring those alternative points of view in line.
rawpixel.com / Freepik
Enjoying the Riches of the Vegan Lifestyle
Veganism was the perfect spiritual decision and came at just the right time – to live a cleaner life; in mind, body and spirit. It is such a freeing and empowering decision! Before, I felt a missing piece in how I lived my life. Veganism was the ultimate way for me to finally express the powerful connection I feel towards humans, animals, and nature.