After Veganuary 2022, which I wrote about here, I hired my friend Jon who is a hypnotherapist to do a few sessions with me.  I wanted to see what these sessions were all about and I mentioned to him that I wanted to become an animal activist.  I keep switching between activist and advocate because activist was the terminology I had always known.  Advocate is a new word for me that, but wasn’t in my wheel house at this time.

Just having these sessions with Jon and saying out loud what I desired manifested exactly what I was looking for, which were opportunities to dip my toes in the waters of activism. Opportunities to learn.  After these hypnotherapy sessions, opportunities just found me.

You know how they always say your phone is listening?  I don’t know how true that is or my algorithm already knew I wanted to be an advocate before I consciously looked anything up, but as I was starting to think about an interest in animal activism and as soon as I finished my hypnotherapy sessions, my Facebook feed showed me a couple of things that looked interesting.  The first was an Animal Justice Academy course which was 6 weeks long and FREE; I signed up. 

The second was a video produced by a group called We the Free (WTF).  The video was focused on data they had compiled regarding activist burnout and the reason behind that burnout, so WTF had came up with a way to track an activist’s impact.  I don’t know what it was about the video, but it wasn’t like the images of the pre-conceived notions I had of an activist.  They had a soft, approachable tone.  They weren’t scary and they offered FREE online workshops for anyone – whether you are a member of a local WTF chapter, or not, so I signed up for one. To this day, I appreciate that this video planted in my brain the fact that my activism must be sustainable. 

The WTF workshop is called Inspiring Behaviour Change and teaches us how to have productive conversations with non-vegans.  Essentially the method is to understand a person’s values and help people come to their own answers and conclusions instead of spewing off facts.  Essentially, we help people come to their own ‘ah ha’ moment by asking questions and provide resources for people to take action. The idea is the person should be talking 80% of the time, and the activists 20%.  I was immediately intrigued from a selfish level.  I thought of how this could benefit me in the workplace and all areas of life, if I could master this approach.

The presenter, James, was fabulous, he had me hooked.  I got brave and asked if there was a group like this in my home town.  I added that I doubted it, given I was in Calgary, Alberta Canada.  To my surprise, he said there was a group in Calgary and that they were great.  He gave me the name of the rep of the group, and I searched him on Facebook and friended him on the spot.  There was also one of the WTF Calgary members IN the workshop and she simply posted in the chat ‘JOIN US!’  Thank you Jazlyn!!

The next evening, Jazlyn invited me to a potluck with the WTF group.  I accepted and then had my husband check me up and down to ensure I was ‘vegan’ enough to attend.  Do my shoes have leather?  Are these socks made of wool?  I can’t go over there in any animal products!  I felt like I was going on a first date.  I felt awkward and wondered if I would belong.  I wondered if they would judge me (they didn’t).  I was also really excited to be around people who GOT it.

The potluck was beyond.  Like beyond amazing.  I hadn’t been in a room in awhile where I KNEW for sure I could safely eat ALL THE THINGS.  We had an absolute feast.  Sara made taco soup and spooned fresh avocado and tortilla chips on top.  Jazlyn is the baker in the group and made chocolate cupcakes!! Someone else brought lentil shepherd’s pie with glorious mashed potatoes on top.  I instantly connected with everyone. I was so happy to be there.

I was the first to arrive and finally left at midnight.  I was able to share my vegan story and what pushed me to ultimately make the switch.  If you have a vegan in your life, ask them to share their story!  To share their ‘why.’  We aren’t asked this enough.  Transitioning to vegan was a monumental mindset shift for me, it’s why I have this blog, as there are so many seeds that led me here, I went through lots of unlearning and re-learning.  I love talking about it and any vegans in your life would surely appreciate a chance to share. 

The WTF group also talked about an opportunity to host the first annual National Animal Rights Day in Calgary on June 5, 2022.  I left that evening agreeing to be a co-organizer.  This would be my first event as an animal advocate.

We had the event, I gave a speech for the animals and we had what felt like a funeral for the animals lost in the past year (I’m pretty good at planning funerals so this felt right up my alley). The animals humans use each year for testing, research, food, entertainment, clothing and more are routinely discarded/killed and not acknowledged.  This event gives us a chance to recognize their existence, to ‘see’ the unseen, to give the voiceless a voice. We collectively acknowledge and feel their suffering and do our best to awaken humanity to this ongoing mass atrocity against the animals.  It was a very cathartic and good experience for me and a good chance to get to know the WTF Calgary group.

We also read the National Animal Rights Declaration at our event and it’s a beautiful read.  You can read and sign it here and it is my wish for all animals.

Peace, love & plants,

Michelle 🙂

p.s. Sign up for Animal Justice’s newsletter to receive updates on current issues in Canada and what you can do to help the animals. Click on this link and scroll down to the bottom to sign up for the Physician’s Committee newsletter and receive action alerts on how you can help the animals. Industries get away with exploiting animals when we are silent, please learn and speak up and strive to change your own habits.