olive_sb.jpgI’m planning, as I’m sure you are, a fabulous Thanksgiving this year with my husband, daughter, and son-in-law (who, by the way, will be a stilt-walker in the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade). Today a message came from Mary Max, a devoted advocate for mitigating cruelty in the world and the wife of the wonderful artist, Peter Max. I’m using her message as a guest blog today, and plenty of food for thought. (The lovely lady pictured here, by the way, is Olive, a rescued turkey who lives at Farm Sanctuary in Watkins Glen, New York, and would love to have you as her sponsor.) Below, from Mary Max:

“I’d also like to take this opportunity to gently encourage those of you who are planning to eat a traditional holiday meal to reconsider and instead extend your compassion to the 46 million turkeys who are cruelly raised and slaughtered just for this day by choosing to celebrate with a vegetarianThanksgiving (that can still be really fun and delicious!). After all, how can we sincerely honor the themes of Thanksgiving (i.e. peace and gratitude) with a slaughtered sentient being in the middle of the table (http://www.goveg.com/factoryFarming_turkeys_farms.asp)?

 

“For scrumptious recipes, please visit:

 

http://www.vegcooking.com/f-thanks05.asp

 

http://vegweb.com/thanksgiving/ or

 

http://www.adoptaturkey.org/aat/recipes/  

 

“And for those of you who think (like I used to) that “free-range” turkeys are not cruelly raised, please visit http://www.free-range-turkey.com/.

 

“Finally, here’s a little poem from an animal’s point of view:

 

  

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  ‘Thanksgiving dinner’s sad and thankless

     Christmas dinner’s dark and blue

     When you stop and try to see it

     From the turkey’s point of view.

 

     Sunday dinner isn’t sunny

     Easter feasts are just bad luck

     When you see it from the viewpoint

     Of a chicken or a duck.

 

     Oh how I once loved tuna salad

     Pork and lobsters, lamb chops too

     Till I stopped and looked at dinner

     From the dinner’s point of view.’

 

     From Where The Sidewalk Ends by Shel      Silverstein

     

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