My View of God as a Philosopher

For those who don’t know I have a Bachelor’s Degree in Philosophy from Arizona State University.

Philosophy is something that has always interested me. I never knew what to do with the degree, I just like learning and expanding my knowledge.

Two of my favorite philosophers of all time are Descartes and Spinoza.

Spinoza had a very interesting view of God and throughout my experience I have developed that same belief in God. I have expressed in the past that I am not religious. Here is an article explaining why I am not religious.

What is also cool about this view is Einstein also believed in Spinoza’s view of God.

Spinoza’s God

Did you know that when Einstein gave lectures at the numerous US universities he was invited to, the recurring question that students asked him was:

Do you believe in God?

And he always answered:

I believe in the God of Spinoza.

The ones who hadn’t read Spinoza didn’t understand…

I hope this gem of history, serves you as much as it does me.

Baruch de Spinoza was a Dutch philosopher considered one of the three great rationalists of 17th-century philosophy, along with René Descartes in France, and Gottfried Leibniz in Germany.

Here’s some of his wisdom:

God would have said:

Stop praying and punching yourself in the chest!

What I want you to do is go out into the world and enjoy your life. I want you to enjoy, sing, have fun and enjoy everything I’ve made for you.

Stop going to those dark, cold temples that you built yourself and say they are my house! My house is in the mountains, in the woods, rivers, lakes, beaches. That’s where I live and there I express my love for you.

Stop blaming me for your miserable life; I never told you there was anything wrong with you or that you were a sinner.

Stop reading alleged sacred scriptures that have nothing to do with me. If you can’t read me in a sunrise, in a landscape, in the look of your friends, in your son’s eyes… you will find me in no book! Trust me and stop asking me. Would you tell me how to do my job?

Stop being so scared of me. I do not judge you or criticize you, nor get angry, or seek to punish you. I am pure love.

Stop asking for forgiveness, there’s nothing to forgive. If I made you… I filled you with passions, limitations, pleasures, feelings, needs, inconsistencies… free will. How can I blame you if you respond to something I put in you? How can I punish you for being the way you are, if I’m the one who made you? Do you think I could create a place to burn all my children who behave badly for the rest of eternity? What kind of God would do that?

Forget any kind of commandments, any kind of laws; those are wiles to manipulate you, to control you, that only create guilt in you.

Respect your peers and don’t do what you don’t want for yourself. All I ask is that you pay attention in your life, that your consciousness is your guide.

My beloved, this life is not a test, not a step, not a rehearsal, nor a prelude to paradise. This life is the only thing that exists here and now, and it is all you need.

I have set you absolutely free, no prizes or punishments, no sins or virtues… no one carries a marker, no one keeps a record.

You are absolutely free to create in your life heaven or hell.

I could tell you if there’s anything after this life, but I won’t… but I can give you a tip. Live as if there is nothing after… as if this is your only chance to enjoy, to love, to exist.

So, if there’s nothing, then you will have enjoyed the opportunity I gave you. And if there is, rest assured that I won’t ask if you behaved right or wrong, I’ll ask. Did you like it? Did you have fun? What did you enjoy the most? What did you learn?…

Stop believing in me; believing is assuming, guessing, imagining. I don’t want you to believe in me… I want you to feel me in you when you kiss your beloved when you tuck in your little girl, when you caress your dog, when you bathe in the sea.

Stop praising me, what kind of egomaniac God do you think I am? I’m bored being praised, I’m tired of being thanked. Feeling grateful? Prove it by taking care of yourself, your health, your relationships, the world. Express your joy!… that’s the way to praise me.

Stop complicating things and repeating as a parakeet what you’ve been taught about me.

The only thing for sure is that you are here, that you are alive, and that this world is full of wonders.

What do you need more miracles for? Why so many explanations?

Look for me outside… you won’t find me. Find me inside… there I am beating within you.

-Spinoza

Credit to: Pallabi Ghosh

All That Exists, Is Right Now

By now I’m sure you’ve all heard the saying; “Yesterday is history, tomorrow is a mystery, and today is a gift… that’s why they call it the present.”

I would like to dive a little deeper into this, because although it seems fairly simple and straightforward, there is such a deeper meaning and importance to this realization.

What it All Means

Like the title says, all that exists is right now.  It is always right now, and it always will be. We are forever living in the present moment.

When we tend to dwell on the past this can cause depression because we think about what could have been. We think of all the things we should have done differently and think of all the missed opportunities.

On the flip side, when you are always thinking about the future and thinking about what could happen, this can cause anxiety.

One of the biggest changes you can make in your life is to become fully present. 

How to Become Present

There are two simple tricks I use to bring myself to the present moment. 

First, I just tell myself to Be Here Now. We tend to get stuck in our heads and think about the past and future instead of just focusing on what is right in front of us. When you tell yourself to Be Here Now, you can enter the flow of the universe.

The second thing I do is I ask myself, “what at this moment is lacking?” You aren’t necessarily looking for an answer when you ask yourself this question. What you are doing is realizing that there is nothing lacking in the present moment. You are alive and have everything you need.

Without fail, every time I ask myself this question and I can feel my shoulders relax and my jaw unclench, and I just fall into a feeling of pure bliss and acceptance.

The Problems We Face

We are living in a world full of distractions and expectations. With the emergence of social media and technology as a whole, we are now more connected than ever. But we face a huge problem which is the fact that most people are faking their lives online and we are just distracting ourselves to try to hide from our unhappiness.

People tend to only post their best moments on social media. They choose the pictures that they look the best in and play along with this whole façade of fake happiness.

Instead of finding true happiness within, we are looking to impress others and fit in as much as possible to feel accepted. But all these societal standards and expectations are terrible for our mental health.

Why You Need to be More Present

Everything in this universe is in a flow. Humans are unique because we have a special awareness within us that allows us to contemplate things and make decisions. This awareness is both a blessing and a curse.

I believe that at least 95% of us are not living in the present moment and this is why there is so much unhappiness in this world.

We are all unique and we were all put on this planet for a reason. We all have our own special quirks and talents. But we are living in a society where we are being conditioned to be like everyone else and just follow the rules.

We are forced to go to school for at least 18 years and then find a job to work for the majority of our life and just survive, buy things we don’t need and pay bills.

I can guarantee that most people don’t truly enjoy their jobs, but the sad truth is, work takes up almost your whole entire life. Even when you’re not at work you’re tired from work so you don’t want to do anything.

How to Find Your Happiness

I can confidently say that I believe the secret to happiness is to stop distracting yourself and get out of your head and become present.

Meditation is the single most effective tool in which to do this. Here is a simple way to meditate for beginners.

We need to stop comparing our lives to other people and find what truly makes us happy and find our true purpose.

You are not tired from doing too much. You are tired from doing too little of what sparks a light inside of you.

When you are able to become fully present you enter the flow of the universe. You can find your true self and find your purpose in life. Now this won’t happen over night but even if you just practice for 5 minutes a day it can change your life so much.

We are conditioned so much in this weird world we live in, so we tend to lose touch with our real selves.

We were not born to pay bills and die. I can guarantee just about ever single one of you reading this has had that feeling inside of them that there is so much more to life. To find this you need to become present and enjoy this gift called life.

Proof That Vegan Food Is Healthier

So, I was just writing a blog post and wanted to find a good picture and so I typed in “unhealthy food” and I got these results here:

I was curious to see what would happen if I searched “healthy food,” here are the results:

If you don’t believe me just do a simple google search and look at the results you get.

Can you see the difference?

Almost 90% of the food considered “unhealthy” is meat products.

Almost every single food that is considered “healthy,” is plant based and vegan; except one piece of salmon.

Yet, people still try to argue that a plant based diet isn’t healthy?

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My argument has always been that a plant-based diet is healthier than the average American diet.

The reason I advocate for a plant-based vegan diet is because meat products are the main contributor to someone eating an unhealthy diet. This is because people choose to eat fast food which is full of processed junk. The “unhealthy” food photo above proves just that.

If someone switched to a plant-based vegan diet they will be cutting out meat so they will no longer be eating fast food and other processed “unhealthy” food.

Therefore, a plant based diet is the best diet someone could choose because it is the healthiest and cheapest.

Thanks for coming to my TedTalk

I Just Went 48 Hours With No Phone, No Food-Nothing. Here Is What I Learned (Repost)

Reason For The Detox

Recently I noticed that my burning passion had been extinguished. Nothing seemed to excite me anymore. I haven’t had much motivation to do anything.

So, I decided to go on a 48 hour complete dopamine detox. During this detox, I could not use my phone or any technology at all. I was not able to eat any food. I didn’t even allow myself to read books, which was weirdly the hardest part. I didn’t even allow myself to lay in bed. I actually only slept a total of 6 hours during the whole 48 hour span.

All I allowed myself to do was meditate, spend time in nature and drink water. This is all I did for 48 straight hours. And honestly, it was a lot easier than I thought it would be.

Did I Ever Want to Give In?

I never once got the urge to go on my phone or laptop. I actually shut both of them off and put them away in a drawer. The thought never once crossed my mind to check them.

I was tempted to eat a couple of different times. But luckily, I literally had no food at all in my apartment. This is what my fridge looked like:

Whenever I got hungry I would just drink some water and the hunger would go away within 5 minutes.

During all of this, I came to a pretty big realization: If you can control your hunger, you can control your life. Find out how, here.

Like I said earlier, the hardest part was not being able to read. I had so many books just laying around and I wanted to consume all the knowledge. But I fought the urge and just stuck to meditating and hiking.

So, What Did I Get From This?

Long story short, I learned a lot of things actually. I realized that cell phones and the internet in general are huge causes of anxiety and the feeling of emptiness. They also disconnect us from the beauty of life and don’t allow us to live in the present moment.

Knowing I wasn’t able to distract myself with anything, and knowing I was forced to fully live in the moment was an amazing thing. Saying that it was beautiful and life changing is an understatement.

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Being able to self-reflect for 48 hours with no distractions was very rewarding. I came to terms with every single thought and doubt I had in my mind. I faced every single problem head on and conquered it. I was able to reflect on my whole entire life and resolve anything that was weighing me down. I successfully got rid of all of my baggage and my head just feels so clear and I feel so free.

Passion

One other major thing I realized was where my lack of motivation and passion was originating from. I realized passion comes from your heart; not your head.

Passion comes from love. You have to truly love your life and you have to love what you are doing to get that sense of motivation and desire. Love is the most powerful force in the universe. Without it, you feel very empty and unmotivated.

There was actually a time not long ago where I would literally jump out of bed in the morning because I was so excited to work on improving my life.

I would be so excited to work on my books and my blog. There were times when I would refuse to go to bed because I felt so good and alive and motivated that I didn’t want to waste any time sleeping. There were times where I wouldn’t eat for 3 days straight because I was so happy and alive and engaged in my work that I didn’t even notice I was hungry.

But, recently I have lost that spark. And during this detox I realized it was because I was neglecting my heart and living solely through my head.

I was too stuck in my head using only knowledge and logic. I fell in to the false need of being a perfectionist. I was avoiding doing any of my work because I had the mindset that everything needed to be perfect.

But, I realized how stupid that was. Life is all about learning. There is no such thing as failure. Everything in life is simply a learning experience.

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If perfection existed there would be no point in human life. We are here to make mistakes and learn from them. We are here to grow and become better people.

But in order to learn and grow you need to take action. There is no opportunity to learn, if you are not doing anything to improve and advance your life.

Life is all about taking risks and going outside of your comfort zone.

If you fail, who cares, at least you tried. At least you took action. It is better than not doing anything and being stuck with the nagging thought of, “what if.”

When the end of your life comes near, you will not regret the things you did. You will regret all of the things you didn’t do.

No one is perfect. We all makes mistakes. Just try your best and learn from the experience. That is what life is all about.

Finding My Passion Once Again

During the detox, I realized I have been neglecting my emotions. I was too focused on logic and knowledge. I was stuck living in my head.

But this detox helped me reconnect with my heart. My burning passion has been rekindled because I opened myself back up to love. I had to rememeber the reason why I do what I do.

Everything I do is to help other people and make the world a better place. And to do that I need to be leading with my heart and leading with Love.

Conclusion

All in all, this was an amazing experience to say the least.

It was a lot easier than I thought it would be. I was actually only going to do it for 24 hours but I felt so good and I was learning so much so I decided to go on for 48 hours.

There was so much more that I learned and experienced, but this post is getting quite long so I am going to stop there.

Why You Should Try It

I recommend a detox to anyone who is lacking motivation and inspiration. I think we all know we could use that extra push in life.

A detox will help you figure everything out in life and help you find your purpose and your passions.

Just start with 24 hours. It is a lot easier than it sounds and it is so worth it. Once you are done everything in life is so much better.

Food tastes better, music sounds better. Overall, you just appreciate life so much more.

You are grateful for what you do have and you no longer focus on what you don’t have.

Try it out for yourself, you won’t regret it.

P.S.

Don’t worry, I went shopping right before this and my fridge is looking a lot better. For some reason the only food I thought about during the detox was watermelon. So I cant wait to cut it up and eat it. It’s going to be life changing.

Why I am not Religious-Religion Vs Spirituality

People feel their religion as right, and others as wrong and this causes conflict. But truthfully, all religions are based on the same thing if you look at their roots. 

Religion is all about; “do what I say without asking.” “If you don’t believe it you’re going to hell.”

Religion is going through a middle man. 

You’re not experiencing it for yourself. 

But we all have different paths to enlightenment. 

Reading the Bible isn’t a Free Pass to Heaven 

We should not be following the Bible word for word. It is just a foundation for spirituality. 

Same goes for every other religion out there.

It was just one guy’s experience. It was one guy who reached enlightenment or salvation; or whatever you want to call it.

It is better to follow a religion than not follow one. But don’t take the one you follow so seriously and so literally. Just learn the important parts and apply them to your life. 
Don’t view your religion as right and others as wrong. 

They are all teaching the same things. There is not one set path to how you reach your highest self.

Spirituality is all about learning and finding your own path. You shouldn’t read a book and follow someone else’s path. Everyone has their own path to enlightenment. 

If you follow the Bible, just reading it and understanding it doesn’t give you a free pass to “heaven.”

You are supposed to look at how Jesus lived and then live a life similar to his. But don’t follow his path. Learn the important lessons and imply them to your life.

-Love Everyone

-Practice Selfless Service

            -act without expecting return

                        -do it because it is the right thing to do (helping an old lady across the street.)

Jesus Was Not the Son of God

Jesus claimed him and God were one. He did not necessarily mean he was the Son of God. I believe he meant he shared a strong conscious connection with God. And anyone that reaches this level of consciousness will also be one with God.

His name wasn’t Jesus Christ. He was Jesus of Christ; meaning he was Christ Conscious.

He reached enlightenment and was sharing his experience and teaching how to become one with God (reach Christ Consciousness).

Christ Consciousness is the frequency that “God” and the universe operate on.
The goal in life is to reach Christ Consciousness.

This is done by learning how to be the best version of yourself and working everyday to reach your full spiritual potential.

It isn’t done by reading the Bible and going to church and you’re all set.

How to Reach Your Full Spiritual Potential

You are a spiritual being having a human experience.

The goal in life is to kill the ego. We are living this life as human beings and as a result we have animal pleasures and desires. 

Our goal is to fight all of those animalistic pleasures and desires and destroy the ego. The purpose of this lifetime was to learn about awareness and consciousness and become aware of the “I” 

This isn’t necessarily possible for most in the spiritual world because there, you just exist and just are. You are not really separate from anyone or anything because you are everything. Everything is connected. 

In this life as a human being you get to feel what it is like to be a separate entity and have an “I”. It can be very scary and uncomfortable for most. The goal is to come together and be one. Love everyone and everything. Accept everyone and everything. Use meditation to kill your ego. Grow as a spirit. Experience everything. 

Stop indulging in physical pleasures and start doing the things that will make you the best version of yourself.

-Exercise

-Meditation

-Reading

-Eating Healthy

-Spreading Love and Happiness

-Drink more water

-Help Others

-Follow Your Dreams

-Be Grateful

-Be Positive

Christ Has Already Returned

“Contrary to the predictions of the return of Jesus, no such event will take place. As with so many things in Christianity, the events and concepts apply to changes in awareness and consciousness, not physical events. Just as salvation is not as it is portrayed in the literal sense, but is a transformation in spiritual consciousness, so too is the Second Coming a transformation in a person’s spiritual consciousness and connection to God, not an outer physical event.”

I believe Christ has already returned. Read why here (link)

Best Argument for Veganism

I think there is enough information out there proving a vegan diet is healthier than the standard American diet; if it is done right.

The Scenario

There are 2 burgers. They taste and look almost exactly the same.

The 1^st burger has a high chance of causing heart disease and cancer. It requires a living thing to be murdered; and it is terrible for the planet because it takes 2,000 gallons of water and 2 acres of land to produce.

The 2^nd burger is a lot healthier. It is made of plants. No one is harmed.

Which one would you choose?

The Main Argument Against This

“Yeah but these foods aren’t accessible and they aren’t as good and they are more expensive.”

**My Answer:

The reason there is a lack of vegan products is because the demand is low.

If more people go vegan there will be way more products and way more restaurants and businesses selling these products.

The food will only get cheaper, healthier, better tasting and more accessible.

All you have to do is cut your meat consumption in half or go fully vegan and more and more products will be available.

It truly is that simple.

Businesses follow the money. There would be way more vegan restaurants today; but there isn’t a high demand and not much money so people are skeptical.

But once the demand goes up I can guarantee these businesses will take off.

(Side note: vegan food is the cheapest food out there if done right; but I’m talking about meat alternatives here)

The Impossible Whopper Is Not Healthier!

I agree; it is not healthy, neither is the original Whopper.

But as demand goes up the more advanced and healthier the meat alternatives will get.

But I Don’t Like Vegan Food, I Like Meat!

If it is all about taste I can guarantee the higher the demand gets, the better the taste.

**Think about it. You could eat all the food you love; but it will be healthy and won’t cost an animal it’s life, and is way better for the planet**

There are some very creative people out there. They will find a way to create a healthy alternative to any food out there.

Why would you not want to choose the 2^nd burger?

Summary:

The first step to there being more vegan products that are easily accessible, cheap and tasty is to go vegan or just cut down your meat consumption.

Once enough of the world goes vegan the demand will be high and all businesses will focus on creating the best and cheapest vegan foods.

**Not only will everyone be healthier and happier. The immoral slaughter of animals will come to and end and MOST IMPORTANTLY we will prevent further pandemics and viruses caused by the consumption of animal!

The 10 Most Attractive Traits in a Woman

Nowadays everyone is so focused on appearance and looks. Social media causes us only to show our best side.

With this comes a lot of false expectations and fake love.

That is why I never focus only on physical looks when it comes to liking a girl.

Looks play a pretty big part but there are a lot more things that cause a girl to be attractive. And without these things it doesn’t matter how pretty you are or how many Instagram followers you have.

So, here are the 10 most attractive traits in a woman. This is purely my opinion but I think a lot of people would agree.

1. Big Heart

Having a big heart and being a super kind person is so attractive. A girl who can brighten up anyone’s day and whom truly cares about others is the cutest thing in the world.

2. Open-minded

Someone who is open to new ideas and is willing to listen to my side is automatically super attractive to me.

I am very different from most people and have a lot of peculiar beliefs and thoughts and so having a woman who is willing to listen and hear my side is so attractive.

People who are shut off to new ideas and refuse to listen to any other perspective are the worst.

I’m not saying all my ideas are right and she should listen and adapt. I just simply want a woman who is willing to listen to those ideas and hear my side and give them a chance. She can then either accept it for what it is, or tell me why she thinks I’m wrong. I’m always down for a debate where we can both learn and grow.

3. Truly Understands Me

This one stems off from #2.

I need a woman who connects with me on a deeper level. Someone who understands my point of view and can relate to my experiences and beliefs.

Communication is by far the most important thing for a healthy relationship.

But communication isn’t very helpful when the people don’t actually understand each other’s side.

That is a huge problem that I always encounter. People can only understand what I’m saying from their level of thinking. Their mind simply can’t process what I’m actually trying to say and this leads to confusion and misunderstanding.

So having a woman that is able to understand from my level of thinking and actually process what I’m trying to say would be perfect.

4. Intelligence

I don’t like when girls act dumb and clueless. Yes, it can be cute. But I want someone who can properly process my level of thinking and can add on to my deep conversations and have educational debates.

I would like someone who has a lot of knowledge or is down for acquiring knowledge.

5. Good Sense of Humor

This one is pretty important and I think a lot of us can agree upon the importance of this trait.

A lot of times girls laugh just because the guy is attractive.

But I want a woman who truly finds my jokes funny and has the same fucked up sense of humor as me.

I am a SUPER sarcastic person and I make a lot of dark jokes and sarcastic remarks. So having someone who understands that I’m joking and will find it funny and even add on to the joke would be so attractive.

If a girl replies to my sarcastic/dark joke with an even darker joke or an equally sarcastic remark…she’s a keeper. So attractive.

6. Passion

By passion I mean someone who has a purpose in life and is driven. If this stems from her having a Big Heart, it’s even more attractive. If she has a passion of helping others and making the world a better place, she is a keeper.

I have a lot to accomplish in my life; so having a woman with similar passions and desire for a fulfilling life, is very important.

I need someone who will push me and keep me on track.

I want her to be independent and have her own goals.

A relationship where you depend on each other for happiness and anything else is a no-no.

You should not be entirely responsible for your partners happiness, success, etc.

You should both be happy with yourselves and have your own goals and come together and share that and build each other up.

When someone has to make sacrifices and compensate, that is where the trouble starts in relationships.

Yes, you will have to make some sacrifices here and there, but it should not be the foundation of your relationship.

7. Emotional Intelligence

A woman who can handle her emotions well and doesn’t project her pain and hurt on others, and blame others, is very attractive.

I am not saying a woman can’t show her emotions and have her moments. That is perfectly fine.

But everyone needs to be able to take responsibility for their emotions and be able to control them to a degree.

Always blaming other people or blaming your partner will cause so many problems. Of course it has to go both ways. I have pretty good control over my emotions and I’m am good at finding the root of the problem and figuring out why I reacted the way I did. So having a girl who can do the same would be so attractive.

A lot of emotional responses come from personal insecurities. People get offended and so try to tear others down to their level to make them feel better about themselves.

If a girl gets offended, a lot of times she is quick to respond negatively and point out a flaw in her partner.

So having a girl who can control that and is able to find where her emotional response stems from is awesome. Even better is she takes the time to work on it and openly talks about it so we can find a solution or come to a mutual understanding.

8. Is Comfortable Giving Me Space When I Need It

This kind of stems from insecurity as well. This one has a lot to do with trust and understanding.

If a girl can’t allow me to go to the gym or go to the grocery store without getting jealous, then there is a problem.

I get jealous too, but it’s not good to be that controlling or obsessive. A lot of that stems from insecurity and lack of honest communication.

But, I am an introvert and there is days where I just need some alone time to regroup.

A girl who is okay with this and understands and doesn’t make assumptions, would be amazing.

A girl who doesn’t take it personally and thinks she did something wrong. A girl who just gets it and allows me to do my thing and is perfectly fine with it. That’s the shit I like.

I know that my actions play a huge role. Obviously if I break her trust or give her reasons to doubt me, that is purely my fault.

But if my words and actions prove that I am loyal, then I would like a girl who understands and accepts that and trusts me.

9. Natural Beauty/Super Cute

I tried staying away from physical traits because we can’t control what we look like physically. I mean there is some things we can alter and our health and lifestyle plays a role. But there’s a lot of attributes we can’t control.

But what we can control is our personality and how we treat others. So those traits are way more important.

But, at the end of the day, you should still be attracted to your partner both physically and mentally/emotionally.

With that being said, what I find most attractive is natural beauty. A girl who is cute af with no makeup. A girl who is super comfortable with her natural look.

I dislike make-up. I don’t want to be with someone who feels the need to put make up on just to go out in public.

I want a girl who is comfortable looking like a scrub. Cute messy hair; just doesn’t really care what others think.

That shits hot.

10. Beautiful Smile

What can I say, I’m a sucker for a beautiful smile.

I’m always teasing and making jokes and so a girl with a beautiful smile is perfect.

A nice, natural genuine, heartfelt smile makes me feel some type of way. Some nice white teeth to add on to that, it’s just perfect.

Conclusion

Personality is everything for me. A girl with a big heart, open mind and good sense of humor is my shit.

This isn’t a conclusive list. It’s not like a girl has to meet all my expectations for me to like her. But she has to be able to have the capacity to change and open her mind for me to click with her and want to be with her long term.

This list isn’t here to make girls upset and feel bad for not meeting even more of society’s standards and expectations.

A lot of these things are aspects that one can change and work on. Everyone has the capacity to be kind, and educated and open-minded.

These are just my personal favorite traits, but I think a lot of people can relate.

So, if you exhibit these traits…what’s up, I’m Erick.

Do I Ever Get the Urge to Eat Meat or Dairy?

I get asked this question all the time ever since I switched to a plant-based vegan diet.

“I could never give up meat, it tastes sooooo good.”

“I would die without cheese.”

“b..bu…but bacon”

I used to eat meat and dairy all the time. I lived on pizza. Meat lovers pizza to be specific.

Chocolate milk used to be my favorite thing in the world.

But I realized that my health and an animal’s life wasn’t worth that couple minutes of pleasuring my taste buds.

At first it was hard. I did crave pizza and meat and all those things.

But when my diet switched, so did my life.

I started seeing things for how they really were and not how society claimed it to be.

My head became clearer. My energy levels were so high. I felt so much lighter and healthier.

It’s been about a year now and my life is so amazing because of my choice to change my diet.

I would say it took about a month to fully get rid of all the cravings. The more time went on the more I started despising meat and dairy.

Pretty soon it actually started to disgust me.

I finally saw it for what it truly was and now I could never eat it again.

I don’t see meat as food, I see it for what it is. It is the bloody, dead flesh of a poor tortured animal.

I don’t see milk as a drink. I see it as a pus filled concoction of estrogen and growth hormones. I see it as a liquid that was meant for a cow. A cow that was killed or deprived of the milk just so a human could enjoy breastfeeding from a mother cow.

So, no, I do not crave meat or dairy. Not even one bit. It actually disgusts me now that I see it for what it really is.

A lot of people reply with, “Oh, you’re just saying that to defend your vegan argument to prove you are right.”

First of all, that is not true at all. I am always honest and straight up. I have nothing to defend.

Second of all, this is where all the misunderstanding comes from.

People see everything as I’m right and you’re wrong.

Everything is a competition when people are living through the ego.

I do not follow this diet to give myself some weird sense of superiority. I do not think I am better than anyone else. I do not try to be better than anyone else. I only try to be better than who I was yesterday. I am only in competition with myself.

I do not think I am right because I follow a vegan diet. I do not think people who eat meat are wrong and inferior.

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I advocate for a plant-based vegan diet because it is the healthiest, and the best for; us, animals and the planet.

I do not present my information to try to say I am right, and you are wrong.

I am simply just trying to educate everyone. I put all these facts out there to help people.

I am trying to help people be healthier and make better choices.

You do not have to listen to me if you don’t want to. I am putting the information out there for people who actually care about their well-being. I put the information out there for people who care about animals and who would like the world to still be around for their children.

I believe diet and lifestyle is the most important thing in a person’s life. What you eat decides your whole life.

I grew up having the worst diet imaginable. I grew up on fast food and pop tarts. There were plenty of days where I would eat a pop tart for all three meals of the day.

I used to be sick 10 months out of the year. I always had a cold. I was always so lethargic.

Once I changed my diet my whole entire life changed.

A plant-based diet is the cheapest, healthiest diet for everyone.

Everything I do is to help other people because I wish someone would have told me all this stuff 10 years ago.

I am just trying to help. I’m not here to prove a point and say I am better, and I am right.

Everything I do, is to help you live a better life.

What I Have Learned From Being Alone For 10 Months

Last year I decided enough was enough. I decided to finally take control of my life and start living for myself.

I transferred to my dream school, packed up all my things, and drove 30 hours across the U.S. to start a new life.

Michigan was not for me. I was never happy. I felt completely trapped and I wanted to escape every single day of my life.

I grew up believing it was too hard living on my own. I was told to go to school close to home. I was led to believe that it is normal never leaving the place you grew up.

But, it turns out people are just scared. People would rather be comfortable, instead of living their life.

People are too scared to be judged so they refuse to follow their dreams.

But I am not like most people.

Everyone thought I was crazy for transferring schools going in to my senior year. But I didn’t care, because I was not happy where I was at.

I realized I was not excited to go back to school, I actually despised it.

Life is way too short to continue to do things that don’t make you happy.

I woke up one day and decided I was moving to Arizona and transferring to my dream school, Arizona State University.

Honestly, it was the best decision of my life by far.

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I didn’t plan this move very well. I am very bad at planning things, I just go with the flow and live in the moment and do what makes me happy.

I drove 30 hours to Arizona without a place to live and school was starting back up in 2 weeks.

Luckily everything worked out; but I knew it would, because everything works in your favor if you are always doing what makes you happy.

For the past 10 months I have been living on my own in a studio apartment.

I didn’t know anyone when I moved here. It was all completely random and unplanned.

But the whole reason I came here was to start over and find myself and just start living life to the fullest.

When I got here I went hiking almost every single day. I spent all my time exploring all the beautiful places. And I did it all alone.

And it’s not like I don’t have friends. I just choose to be alone because that is when I am most happy.

Do I Ever Get Lonely?

Honestly, I absolutely love being alone. That was one of the reasons I moved so far away. I believe the ability to be happy when you are alone is a superpower.

The past 10 months I finally truly learned who I am. After spending so much time with myself I learned to truly love myself. I found all the things that make me happy, I found my life purpose, I found all of my passions, I now have peace within.

I no longer have to depend on other people or other things for happiness. I have everything I need within myself. I could be anywhere in the world, with no material possessions and I would still be extremely happy.

Happiness is not something you find out in the world. Happiness is found within. No amount of money or success can bring you true happiness if you are not first happy with yourself.

Don’t Be Scared to Make the Move

When a flower is struggling to grow you don’t fix the flower, you fix the environment it is in. You cannot heal in the same environment that made you sick.

Being trapped in Michigan was the cause of my unhappiness. I was surrounded by people who were very different from me. I was not able to grow in that environment.

Moving away was the best decision of my life. I highly recommend it to everyone.

DO NOT BE SCARED TO GO ALONE. Going alone is the best possible thing you can do. You will learn so much and you will find true happiness.

It Is Possible For Everyone

I transferred to a school that costs $49,900 just for tuition and I had no money at the time. I drove 30 hours across the US with no plan. I did this all alone and with no help.

It is possible for anyone to start fresh. It is possible to do it alone.

Everything will work out if you are doing what you know is right.

Do not be scared to make the move.

I have grown so much in the past 10 months.

When I packed my things up and drove across the country I felt free for the first time in my life.

Going off on my own was the first time I ever felt alive. It felt like I finally just started living my life.

Eating Animals Because “They Taste Good” Is Not Justifiable

“I could never give up meat because it tastes too good”

“I would die without cheese”

One of the biggest arguments against veganism is people say they can’t give up animal products because they taste too good. 

Therefore, you are favoring your tastebuds over a living being. 

You are saying it is justifiable to allow the torture, mutilation and murder of a living being for your own sensory pleasure. 

Sensory Pleasure is Not Justifiable

Let’s apply this logic to other examples and see if it is justifiable:

-If someone steals from someone because they enjoy it. It gives them sensory pleasure; is it justifiable?

-If someone commits rape because they enjoy the sensory pleasure of sex; is that justifiable?

Just because you receive sensory pleasure from something doesn’t make it right. 

Therefore, supporting the torture, mutilation and wrongful killing of animals, because you enjoy the taste of their dead flesh, is not justifiable. 

Why It is Inhumane

Eating and killing animals is unnecessary. 

It is destroying our health and it is destroying the planet. 

It is healthier to not eat animals. 

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There is no humane way to kill something that does not want to be killed. 

95% of meat comes from factory farms. 

Animals live under horrible conditions in factory farms and are killed prematurely. 

Therefore, eating them is inhumane. 

Moving Forward

Start cutting back on animal products today. 

People say they could never go vegan. This is because they are unaware of all the amazing options.

People always ask, “what do you even eat?”

To answer that, I will reply with what I don’t eat. It is just two things. Dead animals and their secretions.

Everything else out there is “vegan.”

There are endless options.

For every food you enjoy, there is a healthier vegan option of it.

As demand goes up, more and more delicious products will be released.

Speciesism Vs Racism

With this whole George Floyd thing, the huge divide amongst us becomes very apparent.

I believe racism and speciesism stem from the same source.

Speciesism is the assumption of human superiority over other animals. We think we are superior, so this is what makes it seem justifiable to torture and murder other living beings for our own sensory pleasure.

I think when one is a speciesist it can contribute to one being racist. This is a huge claim and I am not saying there is a direct correlation. I am just saying there can be some cause and effect.

If one feels he is superior over other living beings it would make sense he would feel superior to other humans beings as well.

It is hard to spread peace and love when we are murdering billions of animals for our own pleasure.

I don’t think much progress can be made with human rights when we treat other living beings so poorly.

“Greatness of a nation and its moral progress can be judged by the way its animals are treated.” -Mahatma Gandhi

Cognitive Dissonance

One thing I have noticed while advocating for veganism is the amount of cognitive dissonance in the world.

Cognitive dissonance is when you have beliefs that contradict each other.

For example, people claim to be animal lovers. They love their cats and dogs. But then they go and eat the flesh of other animals. They think it is normal to have one animal as a pet and then pay for the torture and murder of other animals.

Or; people claim to want peace and equal rights. But then claim to be superior over all other living things. You cannot have peace when you are wrongfully killing billions of living things only for the sake of pleasure.

Conclusion

There is obviously a huge disconnect. People don’t understand how wrong it is to be consuming all these animal products.

Just because we have always done something doesn’t make it right.

Following a plant-based vegan diet is the best possible lifestyle change you can make for yourself and for the world.

There is a lot of other food out there that tastes amazing. This food is better for your health and the health of the planet and it doesn’t require innocent animals to be murdered.

Making The Switch

I don’t expect everyone to turn vegan overnight.

Just start cutting back on meat. Switch to plant based milks.

Watch some documentaries or YouTube videos on veganism.

Documentaries: Cowspiracy, What the Health, The Game Changers, Earthlings, etc

YouTubers: Earthling Ed. This post was actually inspired by his latest YouTube Video.

Please do your best. That is all I am asking.

I do not believe you are a bad person for eating meat. I ate meat for 21 years of my life.

I just simply want to help you, help the planet and help the animals.

Thank you.