future vegetarian society

It occurred to me that we have yet to blog about the excitement we had last weekend. In the middle of our (crazy!) cold snap, we had the experience of a power failure. Right as we were cleaning up the supper dishes, the power snapped off. A quick call to the "power line" indicated that we could be in for a long wait to discover the problem. Not a fun prospect when the wind chill outside was in the -48C region.

In any case, we decided to make the most of it. Out came the candles, an extra layer for everyone to wear, and some board games. After an hour or so, the children were getting a bit bored of their game, so I offered to read to them. Choosing an old favorite from my childhood, we settled in to read.

Growing up, I read the Little House series by Laura Ingalls Wilder faithfully every year. I'd work my way through the series, and still own 8 of the 9 books from the box set (somehow, The First Four Years - both the shortest and saddest of the series - has gone missing). Since Laura and her family didn't have electricity, I figured it would be a good time to read and consider the modern conveniences we enjoy.

They really enjoyed the story...until it was butchering time for the family's pig. As I read the story of Pa and Uncle Henry butchering the pig, and cutting up the meat, the children looked ever so much more green. Finally Isaac stopped me with a "why would they DO that?"
My reply: "that's how they got meat. Bacon, ham, ribs, pork chops".
Isaac: "ew, they should just go to the store and buy some"
Mom: "they couldn't. the stores didn't sell meat like the do at Extra Foods."
Norah: "poor little pig. I'm so sad"
Isaac: "I'm never eating pig again"
Mom: "really? you like ham, and bacon, and pork chops"
Isaac: "not anymore, I don't"
Mom: "I can understand not wanting to eat head cheese, but you like pork"
Isaac: "I did. I'm done"

So we continued on with the story, and after another hour or so, the power came back on. We then headed out to a Christmas party at a friend's house, and got home very late.

Next morning was the Sunday School pageant, followed by a lunch. During the lunch, I found Isaac eating some pork sausage. Informed him that the sausage was made of meat, specifically pig meat.
Isaac: "I know. It's tasty"

Perhaps a future vegetarian, perhaps a dedicated carnivore. Only time will tell.