I've been strict vegan for over 10 years now. I love it. As soon as I became vegan, just as a week long experiment, I felt so much more vital and alive. The moral issues regarding how inhumanely animals are treated and slaughtered also struck a deep chord with me after reading "A Diet for a New America," by John Robbins.

For years I adopted a "to each their own" policy about dining preferences. I tried not to judge my friends and family who ate meat, figuring that they must be eating what they needed to for their own evolution. However, after countless meals over the last decade with my family, I've been poked fun at, ridiculed, and admonished for being vegan. All while they're ordering lamb and pork, and I must pretend not to care. Sometimes I slip and talk about the industry issues. I'm baffled at their lack of interest in these moral issues, not to mention the scientific proof of increased health due to a vegan diet.

Obviously, we do fit in some vegan restaurants, but more often, it's a compromise of a conventional restaurant that has 1 or 2 vegan options. It now makes me so uncomfortable to be around meat,  that eating out becomes a sad ritual.

I've almost given up hope that my family will seriously care about these issues anytime soon. I know we're all different people and have different lessons to learn. But I wish they'd consider it. Anyone have any success stories of inspiring friends / family members by their example?