heart

To My Shadow Workers

 

Photo Credit: @pilupepper on Instagram

First off, I love you all. Otherwise I wouldn’t bother.

Dairy — An Industry Built On Exploitation, Lies and Hidden Addictions

We humans are quite silly. In a kind of tragic way, to be honest.

We go on about peace while paying for the worst acts of violence. Like separating a mother and her baby.

Obviously that makes no sense.

And then we act helpless, as though we’re not creating the world by virtue of our collective behaviors. Why do we do this?

For those who don’t know, cows cannot produce milk without getting pregnant. Yep. Just like humans.

And contrary to what the idyllic images of cows strolling merrily along the fields would have you believe, they are not just naturally getting pregnant or breeding on their own.

This is actually a 180° inversion of the truth. Like most things.

In reality, they are held in what the industry itself calls ‘rape racks’ — can’t make this stuff up.

Yes. That’s how they get pregnant.

Then, not only are their babies taken away from them so that humans can drink the ‘milk’ intended for their newborn — because you know cheese.

But these mothers are in fact physically violated over and over again in a continuous nightmare that constitutes their life.

Just to give you an idea of the level of exploitation and exhaustion they go through, what would naturally be a 20-25 year lifespan, won’t be more than 4-5 years. At which point she will be sent to slaughter.

Because coconut creamer for your coffee is too much to ask.

All the daughters she gives birth to will live the same fate as her. Her sons will have it a bit better, as they will be kept in tiny crates so their muscles can’t fully develop. Then slaughtered while still babies.

So people can eat ‘veal’ (tender meat caused by immobility) but at least they will have the good fortune of having a much shorter life.

Perhaps it’s time to be more honest about our true values. And stop shouting about things that we’re not actually willing to change.

To our collective growth,

Tara x

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THROUGH ILLUSIONS

 

The ego either talks or avoids

Because lies can only be

Defended w words

Or avoided

With the loudest silence

The heart recognizes both

And can sit still

In the midst

And Know

To our collective growth,

Tara x

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Black Lives

 

Why they matter and why being silent is also ok


Photo Credit: @bobbysud on Instagram

Photo Credit: @bobbysud on Instagram

Dear Friend,
 

So I’ve been thinking

Long and hard 

About whether or not

To speak on this

 

And about the push back

I might get

From various groups

And people

 

But to honor my path

And my personal agreement

With God

Which is to always act

In alignment with the highest version

Of myself

— even when it’s uncomfortable —

I feel the need to speak on it

 

Actually

There are two things

I really feel the need

To address

This week

 

Especially in light of

Everything that’s going on

In the world at the moment

 

The first:

Whether or not it’s ok

To stay silent right now

 

And the second: 

Whether the phrase All Lives Matter

Is an acceptable response

To the phrase Black Lives Matter 

 

As I break down my thoughts 

On each of these 

It may seem like 

I’m on two different sides

Of the issue

 

And that’s part of why

I was initially hesitant

To speak on it

 

So all I ask

Is that you hear me out

Before drawing your conclusions 

 

So the first issue:

Do I feel it’s ok to stay silent right now?

 

Yes — not only do I feel it’s ok

But in some cases, I would actually prefer

People stay silent

 

Specifically I’m referring to people

Who are not — for one reason or other —

Speaking out 

About the murder

Of George Floyd

 

As someone who works 1:1 

With some of the biggest

Influencers, athletes

And thought leaders

In the world

 

I can tell you for certain 

That silence is not always

A sign of apathy

 

In fact, I’ve been having

Some of the most difficult

And meaningful conversations 

Of my life this past week

 

Some people — both black

and white — aren’t ready 

To come out and speak about 

What’s happening yet

Because they’re still processing

Their feelings

 

Others feel like they need

To stay silent and LISTEN

So they can fully appreciate 

What’s going on

And THEN speak out

 

And that’s a distinction I feel

It’s important to make 

Everyone’s timeline is different

 

Personally, I would much rather 

People actually be IN 

Their authentic feelings

Truly listening to others 

With an open mind and heart

 

I would much rather people LISTEN

While going through an authentic process

Of deep awakening & internal change

 

Than to jump on social media and speak

Just for the sake of speaking

 

Or, even worse, to say something 

That isn’t really heartfelt 

 

We can all see through it

When someone is just giving lip service

 

To a certain issue 

 

But doesn’t really FEEL 

The emotional resonance 

Of their own words

 

I don’t know about you

But to me it’s clear as day

When someone is simply speaking

Out of fear or a sense of obligation 

 

And quite honestly

It’s painful to listen to 

 

I think it’s also worth saying

Some people don’t know 

WHAT they feel

And if they do know

They don’t know HOW 

To actually speak on it

Or maybe they’re just not ready to 

 

Which makes all the people online

Telling people that they have to speak up

That they’re being put “on notice” if they don’t

Similar to the people trying to tell everyone

The “right way” to protest

 

Fundamentally

It’s all a form of bullying

And it’s a problem

No matter who’s doing it

 

Ok - now onto the second issue:

 

Is it ok to say All Lives Matter

When someone says Black Lives Matter

 

In my opinion

Absolutely not

It’s not only not ok

But it’s hugely dismissive, minimizing

And — I don’t love to use this word — 

Ignorant 

 

I especially wanna say this 

To my beloved vegan community

 

Because I know many of you

Personally

 

And I know most of you

Would never intentionally

Minimize the pain of any group 

 

But please know that 

When you say all lives matter

You are acting no better 

Than that person in your comments section

Shouting things like “don’t you care about people”

When you try to bring to their attention 

The issue of animal suffering

Cruelty and slaughter 

 

Point being, pain must be witnessed

And fully acknowledged 

Before it can be healed 

 

Lastly

It’s important to remember

That when someone says 

Black Lives Matter

 

They’re not actually 

Taking anything away 

From you

 

Or from any other cause 

Or movement for that matter

 

On the contrary

When we respond with 

All Lives Matter 

 

We ARE attempting 

— however unconsciously — 

to overlook and bypass 

Legitimate pain and suffering

 

And very legitimate rage

 

Not to be confused with violence 

 

Violence is an action


Whereas anger

Is an emotional response

 

And even though

Anger makes people uncomfortable 

It’s not the same as violence


And when it is actually accepted

Without judgment 

And without 

The need

To water it down

 

The anger serves 

A very important

And very necessary

Purpose

 

Just as our anger 

In the vegan community

Mobilizes action

 

So it is

In any community

 

Let’s not forget that 

Oppression anywhere

Is oppression everywhere

 

Joy is our natural state

 

It’s time for us to remember

 

To our collective growth, 

Tara x

 
 

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Knowing Yourself

 

How to dig deeper on your emotions


So here’s the thing

The ACTUAL thing

That’s holding you back

From creating the life

And the impact 

You really desire

 

The thing is

You’re still watering down

Who you really are

What you REALLY feel

What you actually believe

And the message

You were truly born

To share with the world

 

And that is both

A good and bad thing

 

Of course it’s not actually 

A bad thing

 

But it probably does pose

A bit of a challenge 

 

Reason being

That almost all people

— to one degree or another — 

Are afraid to be ALL OF

Who they really are

 

And the main reason 

For that

Is because 

Most people

Care more about

What other people

Think about them

Than what they actually think

About themselves

 

So the challenge 

Then becomes

How to care LESS 

About the opinion of others

And MORE about the opinion 

Of Yourself 

 

And the only way to do this

Is to actually get to know yourself 

On a deeper level

 

One of the best ways 

To do this

Is to keep a journal

And take notes

On how you feel

Throughout your day

 

Specifically

You’ll want to pay attention

To the relationship between 

Any strong emotions that come up

And the events, people, and situations

That trigger those emotions

 

An example of how to do this:

 

Let’s say

I walk into the house

My partner is working on something

And — because he’s so into

whatever he’s working on —

He doesn’t say hello to me

Right away

 

His delay

Triggers 

A feeling of anger

In me

 

But when I dig deeper

The anger is really a mask

Covering up the fact that I’m hurt

 

Maybe I feel unappreciated

Or unimportant

 

Perhaps I had some exciting 

News to share

 

Making my partner’s 

Seeming indifference 

Even more frustrating

 

But let’s say my anger/hurt

Doesn’t go away 

When he actually stops what he’s doing

And comes over to say hello to me

 

Let’s take it one step further

And say that I actually tell him

How it made me feel when he didn’t 

Acknowledge me right away

 

Let’s say he actually apologizes

And is totally sincere in his apology

But I can feel the hurt

Still swirling around

Inside me

 

Then I dig a little deeper

And realize that the reason 

I still feel hurt

Is because this incident

Triggered a childhood memory

Of how I often felt unacknowledged

By the people/adults around me

 

This is just one example 

How how to dig deeper 

On your own emotional process 

 

And it’s critical to do so

Because the path to self-love

Comes through self-knowledge 

 

Until you get to know yourself

More deeply

You will be tempted 

To blame others

And to externalize

Your emotions 

Onto them

 

But your emotions

Always belong to you

Even when they are triggered

By others

 

And then of course the good news

Is that once you get to know yourself

And love yourself for ALL OF 

Who you are

 

It will become

Much less important

To you

What others think

 

And from that place

You will be able 

To create true magic

In the world

By being all of who

You came here to be

 

Joy is your natural state

It’s time for you to remember

 

To our collective growth,

Tara 

 
 

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EVOLVING TOGETHER

 

Vegan is the moral baseline, not the final frontier


Photo Credit: @bobbysud on Instagram

Photo Credit: @bobbysud on Instagram

I’m prepared 

To lose a few subscribers

On this one

 

Although I hope not to

 

In fact, I hope those of you

Who are the most active

In the vegan community

Might be willing

To give this some thought

And let me know

What you come up with

 

Believe me when I say

That this is a long ways

From how I used to feel

Just a few years ago

 

That’s not to say

That how I feel now

Is any better or worse

 

This is just my current perspective

And I'm sharing it

In hopes

That it will add to yours

 

First, let me just say 

That the work vegan activists do

Is far from easy

And I don’t just mean

The 'external' work of activism

I mean the internal, emotional work

 

There is much trauma

In our community

 

And for very good reason

 

The suffering that animals

On this planet endure

At the hands of humans

Is truly beyond

The realm of comprehension

 

And I’d like each

And every one of you

To know

That your pain

Is a sign of your humanity

 

It’s not something

To try and hide

 

On the contrary

The ability to feel deeply

Is a beautiful thing

 

And as vegans

Isn’t that what we want? 

For other people to feel more deeply? 

 

To feel for those

Who don’t walk or talk

Or look like them?

To finally make the (vegan) connection? 

 

I know for myself

It’s that disconnect

In the world

That sometimes 

Breaks me down

 

And yes

At times

Still fills me with rage

 

But to take that pain

And turn it into a weapon

To use on other people 

Or social media

As a place 

To take and essentially dump

All our pain and trauma

Doesn't necessarily serve
The animals

 

And I don't believe

It serves us either

 

Shame does not open people up

To compassion

 

The energy of anger

— if not properly harnessed — 

Can cause more pain

And disconnection

Than it cures

 

And — whether it’s intentional

or not — 

Inducing repeat-trauma

In people

Is not our path

To a better world

 

The way I see it

The most direct path

To a more compassionate world

"out there"

Is for us to embody

The compassion

We want to see in others

"in here"

 

In all that we do

In all that we share

In all that we speak

 

Yes, it’s very challenging at times

But isn’t that the work?

 

Isn't our job

To keep improving

And evolving

As Souls in a human body?

 

Do I believe that being vegan

Is a part of that evolution?

Yes - I absolutely do

 

But I think 

It's just as important

For us to remember

That we ALL came here

To do our personal work

 

Being vegan

Doesn’t exempt us

From this process

 

If we’re doing it for the animals

Then we need to do what is effective

 

If we’re doing it for the animals

Then we need to keep in mind

That others are not less than us

And that — karmically speaking —

The corrections are alway made

Whether in this life 

Or the next

 

However imperfect we may all be

We are still fellow earthlings

 

And ultimately

We are here

To walk each other 

Back home

 

To our collective growth,

Tara x

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GOING INWARD

 

You’re either observing Your reality 
Or you’re creating it


You’re either observing 

Your reality 

Or you’re creating it

But you’re absolutely

Never

Doing both

It’s fine to be aware

Of what’s going on

In the world

But 

If you give 

All your attention 

To it

Then not only

Are you not

Giving your attention

To your own life

But you’re also

Not changing

Anything 

About the world

Don’t get me wrong

To some extent

We do need to be aware

So on the face of it

There’s nothing wrong with that

But there’s

An even deeper truth

That I’ve learned

Which is that 

In order to change 

The world

We have to change 

Ourselves

This sounds easy

On the surface

But it’s not

Because in order 

To change ourselves

We have to work

From the inside out

And because

If you commit deeply

To this work

You will realize

That it never ends 

Which also means

If you committed deeply

To this work

You don’t have time

For distractions

I understand 

That this reality

Is very compelling

And I know

There are many

MANY 

Things

Not right

With this world

But that right there

Is actually

All the more

Reason

To commit

To the inner work

Because this is truly

The only way

To Shift 

To alchemize

To bend

And to alter 

The reality 

We perceive 

And experience 

So yes
Do acknowledge

What troubles you

About the world

But use your pain

Your anger

Your passion

To fuel your impact

To Expand 

Your heart 

Not to contract it

Joy is your natural state

It’s time for you to remember 

To our collective growth,

Tara x

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LOVELESS LOVE

 

Why Being Vegan is a Prerequisite for a Relationship


Photo Credit: @bobbysud on Instagram

Photo Credit: @bobbysud on Instagram

Preface:
This message 
Is for you 
Whether you’re vegan 
Or not not
 
<3
 
Not everyone will agree
But to me
Being vegan
Is a prerequisite
For a partnership
 
There are actually
Lots of reasons
For this
But let me give you
My primary one
 
The main argument 
People make

For why being vegan
Shouldn’t matter 
In a romantic relationship 
Usually goes something 
Like this:
 
Two people 
Don’t have to have
The exact same beliefs
To be happy together
 
My aunt is Republican
My uncle is a Democrat
They’ve been happily married
For 35 years
 
A similar argument 
Is made
For people 
With different
Religious backgrounds  
 
And I’m sure these scenarios exist
But political and religious issues
Have nothing on Veganism
Because two people 
With different political
Or even religious views
May still have
Very  similar morals
 
In other words
The WAY they live their life
Their personal code of conduct
May be identical - or very close to it
Regardless of who they voted for
Or what God they pray to
 
This is totally not the case
When it comes to being vegan
 
Because not only is being vegan
A deep and fundamental belief 
That one species is not superior 
To another 
 
But identifying as vegan
Actually requires action/behavior
That is in alignment
With this fundamental belief
 
And the action that it requires
Unlike with a lot of other issues
Isn’t “gray” or open to interpretation
 
The parameters are clear
And the boundaries - therefore
Are impossible to miss
 
I’ve seen countless vegans
Try time and time again
To come together with someone
Who doesn’t share 
In their moral code
 
Not only that
But I’ve done it myself
 

And it has caused
Both them and myself
A ton of unnecessary suffering
 
<3
 
Now to circle back
To what I said
At the start


This message 
Is for anyone
Vegan or not
Who has ever
Tried to deny
The Truth
Of you who are
 
STOP IT 
 
Stop pretending 
Like you don’t know
What you want
What you need
What you desire
What you deserve
 
Stop pretending
Like you don’t know
What your Soul 
Is calling for
 
Stop pretending 
Like you don’t know
Who you are
And what matters to you
So damn deeply
 
That until you have it
EXACTLY 
The way you want it
 
You don’t want it
 
Joy is your natural state
It’s time for you to remember 
 
To our collective growth,
Tara x

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SPREAD A MESSAGE THAT'S GREATER THAN YOU

 

What’s on your heart matters. Let the things you see wrong in the world serve as your motivation to change them. Spread a message that’s greater than you ♥️

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Make the Connection

 

Everyone has at least heard about the disastrous wildfires in Australia by now. But did you know that the same number of animals dying in the fires (an estimated 500 million) is slaughtered every two days for meat consumption?


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Please take a moment to make the connection to your own habits and consider opting for a lifestyle that doesn’t include violence towards animals. If you find yourself having compassion when seeing the burned cattle bodies in Australia, how can you not have compassion for the same creatures being slaughtered for your dinner? 😢It’s time to look to the things we have control over.

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GENERATIONAL TRAUMA IS REAL

 

Generational trauma is a real thing. But can we overcome it with generational wisdom?


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It's a Calling

 

Activism and social justice aren’t about doing what “makes sense” — they’re about doing what you know deep within your Soul you came here to do. So you can leave this world a better place for your (our) children and for all Life on Earth.

Somedays it’s about doing what you need to do — SAYING what you need to say — just so you can sleep at night.

When you allow yourself to be available to the life God wants for you, it’s not a hustle. It’s a calling. Stay woke. I love you all

♥️🌱 Tara x

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WHY I CARE

 

WHY I CARE ABOUT THINGS THAT DON’T HAVE A DIRECT IMPACT ON ME


I went vegan for the animals and only for the animals.
But as I’ve educated myself over the years, I’ve learned that living vegan is a matter of justice.
.
.
It’s a matter of class justice.
It’s a matter of race justice.
It’s a matter of environmental justice.
It’s a matter of human justice as much as it is a matter of animal justice.
.
.
That’s why when people ask me if it’s hard, I almost can’t even comprehend the question.
.
.
Now before you judge that statement and use it as a reason to judge vegans, please understand that I don’t mean that in an egotistical way.
I’m just saying that at some point you realize it’s not about you.
But then you go a little deeper, and you realize that you actually benefit from the decision to give up animal products.
And then the only thought left is why you didn’t do it sooner.
.
.
The simple decision of what you choose to eat can single-handedly eliminate the suffering and slaughter of billions of innocent lives.
Not to mention, take down the cruelest industries and wealthiest people on the planet (just to be clear, I’m not against them because they’re wealthy, but just like people who have made their billions by making people sick - think tobacco industry - or by enslaving women, I’m against them because of the means they have chosen to come into that wealth)
.
.
Animal lives.
Human lives.
Mother Earth.
My health.
The degradation of this entire world ecosystem — all of it rests on what I choose to put in my mouth.
.
.
So yes, it’s about our human responsibility.
I don’t know why we’re so afraid of that word.
It feels good to be responsible.
It feels good to know I’m doing what I can to reduce the suffering on this planet.
It feels good to sleep with a clear conscience at night.
.
.
And yes, on a personal level, it feels good to know that I’ve slowed down the aging process.
It feels good to have a lot of energy.
it feels good to have clear skin and healthy intestines.
It feels good to put food in my mouth that I know came from the earth and not from someone who once had a heartbeat.
So it appeals to my self interest as much as it appeals to my desire to do good.
.
.
To our collective growth,
Tara x

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WE DON’T ALWAYS HAVE TO SAY “SAME HERE”

 

TOTAL COMPASSION DOESN’T REQUIRE TOTAL UNDERSTANDING.


You can never truly know someone’s pain until you’ve walked in their shoes.


The funny this I’ve noticed, because we live in a culture where people are so quick to wanna relate to everyone since we’re so hungry for connection, we get more consumed with telling our own story than to just listening to somebody else’s.


And allowing it to be different from our own.
.
.
You don’t have to have the same experience as someone else in order to connect with them.
Luckily total compassion doesn’t require total understanding.


It just requires the humility to know that we can never completely understand.


And to be ok with that without minimizing the other’s experience.
And most importantly, without marginalizing them. .
.
To our collective growth,
Tara x

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