So, I did it. I became one of those "crazy vegans." You know what I'm talking about; you are probably picturing the vegan you know or follow on social media and applying her/his attributes to me subconsciously right now. Some of you are wondering why, and others are curious as to how I do it. However, most of you are probably cringing at the term "vegan" and are saying "Oh No! not another one." Well, Oh Yes! they drafted another one. Don't worry, I was just like you. I loved to load my chipotle bowl with sour cream and cheese. I never said no to barbecue wings and I requested ribs for all my birthday dinners. But then it happened, I educated myself.

It started last winter break. With my first semester of college calculus complete, I felt binge watching documentaries on Netflix would be a noble reward. I randomly chose "Cowspiracy." I can't say I went into watching it with zero idea of what I was getting myself into, but I definitely didn't know I would spend the rest of the break researching the different environmental, health and sustainability benefits of vegetarianism and veganism. I immediately cut meat out of my diet. I even made it my New Year’s resolution to never eat meat again (the only one of my New Year’s resolutions that has ever stuck). I was just a vegetarian (meat-free) for about six months. I wasn't fully convinced that being vegan would be practical for my life. I live in a small rural, what I like to call “cornfield town” in Ohio, where the nearest Starbucks is a 30-minute drive. A number of people in my town can't even define vegan; therefore, there is very little demand for vegan alternatives. My mom grew up on a farm; she milked cows. I've seen some dairy farms and as an outsider, it all seemed pretty humane to me. So I didn't feel guilty pouring milk on my cereal each morning.

I still viewed vegans as extremists, "why do all vegans have to have 'veg' in their bios," "why do they always seem to be in a Twitter fight with someone who eats meat," "how can dietary habits be so important to them"? I had the same stereotypical image of vegans that you do, "all vegans are crazy." It wasn't until this summer that I made my switch. My best friend and I decided one day we were going to try it. What can it hurt? We'll probably lose some weight and look better in a bikini; we might as well try! I don't do anything without being able to defend my reasoning behind it, so I dove into some more research--this time on YouTube. I watched Gary Yourofsky (now one of my idols) speak to university students about veganism, and it changed my life. It was a daunting hour and eight minutes long, but that was a similar length to the documentaries I had watched on Netflix. After listening to him speak, I finally understood that I was the crazy one for not making the switch to veganism sooner. How can vegans be the crazy ones when meat eaters preach about how much they love animals then proceed to take a bite of their brutalized, enslaved, dead animal on their own plate? How is thinking and caring about future generations, and the future of this Earth insane?

My epiphany was that not speaking up for animal rights, the environment, and even just taking care of my own body was doing myself, and those around me, a disservice. My switch to veganism was as smooth as the switch to becoming a vegetarian. Even in the constraints of my cornfield hometown, I am able to find vegan options that even my dad, who is a notorious meat lover, finds tasty. I didn't include a bunch of pro-vegan facts and statistics in this article because I believe if you do your own research, you will come to the same conclusion that I did. Then maybe you too will become a "crazy vegan."