Eating out is always an event for me. I don’t cook. Those accompanying me at a meal for the first time learn something new about me when they do. I’m vegetarian.

“What do you mean,” they ask.

“It means I don’t eat the animals,” I answer.

The inquiry is usually followed by another one. “Why?”

I usually don’t like answering the question. Most people don’t get it. They don’t care enough. They don’t want to.

The lack of importance people give to the fact that they kill other beings to eat makes me angry, so I’d rather not spoil my dinner by trying to explain my food choices. I subsequently leave it at “because I don’t want to.”

However, in this column I get to express myself and give insight into something I think others ought to know. So I’ll answer the question, but first, I’d like to ask everyone else a question.

Why would you kill another live being to feed yourself when you could very well do so without taking another life?

That’s how I see it.

If that doesn’t seem like enough to burden your conscience, think of this. But really think about it. Don’t just read and forget.

The way in which animals are killed for you to fill your gut with animal fat is anything but humane. I would recommend people watch the documentary Food Inc.

It shows the truth behind animal food products that many like to eat and even think is healthy.

Most people won’t watch it. They don’t care enough. They don’t want to.

Well, I do. I care for the cows, especially those that care for their calves. How would you like to be hung by your leg on a machine line while you’re still alive and then decapitated?

Now I won’t get graphic here, but I’m actually tired of people not getting graphic enough to speak the truth of how these animals are being murdered for the sake of a person’s lunch.

Maybe if someone did, more people would care enough to make a difference. They’d want to care. Let’s care.

According to The Wall Street Journal, as of 2009 Americans consumed an average of 265 pounds of meat per person annually. Most of the flesh comes from chicken, cattle, and pigs.

Should we cringe, cry or barf at these numbers? One CAN survive and even thrive on a plant-based diet. I’ve done it for three years and feel great.

So what do we eat if we don’t eat the animals? This is usually the next question because people are by nature, selfish.

If you don’t care enough about the animals’ lives, then think about your own. Most of the people in this country are obese. They’d be better off choosing more fruits and vegetables over the animal parts anyways.

Living in Texas, the idea of not eating barbeque or hamburgers sounds more like a sin. However, most restaurants that I’ve been to here include vegetarian options on their menus. I must say they are quite tasty too.

Not only will those who opt for plants over animals feel better health-wise, but they will also lose weight and have increased energy levels. According to whom? Well, me.

I’m not a nutritionist or a doctor, but I’ve done this vegetarian thing for a while and can speak from experience. The benefits are infinite.

I’ve consistently lost weight but the lightest part of my body is my conscience. I don’t have the lives of the animals that unwillingly died to feed me weighing it down.

Let’s care, even if it’s just a little bit more. Why or more importantly, how do I care so much?

I play empathetic. What if it was I being murdered to feed someone else? What if it was I being force-fed daily to grow enough to feed more people? What if was I stuck in a cage while others roamed free?

All of a sudden things change. Perspective is everything. More people should put themselves in the place of these animals they like to eat so much.