No flesh of living creature

had passed my virgin lips for all of 24 years.

 

My label vegetarian almost vegan in fact

and I ate my beans and nuts most conscientiously

with no intent to change

(beyond, mayhap  to resort to water and air only

not a cabbage to crunch

 tomato  crush or potato to uproot.

And so it was, trundling along

no blood on my hands, I thought

more or less innocent

and the collective responsibility.

 

Until

out of the blue my body spake:

get me fish!

 

Now, I might have argued:

I’m taking the oils and anyway

I’m honor bound by commitments

It’s a principle after all…

…isn’t it?

I might have.

 

But if there’s one thing I have learnt

it’s that the brain in the belly knows:

it knows  deeply and truly

what it needs

more than my top-wobbly one ever can;

 

I won’t argue with that.