This June, I decided to make a change in my life by giving up eating meat to pursue a vegetarian lifestyle. Many people believe that being a vegetarian requires a lot of time, planning and thought. I’m here to say it’s not as difficult as you would think. The jump from carnivore to herbivore was not that difficult for me. Many don’t realize how little meat you actually eat in your day-to-day life. Don’t worry, I am by no means an animal rights activist. I guess you could just classify me as an extreme case of picky eating. Every time I mention to a person at Freedom that I am a vegetarian, I get the same responses. I hear things like, “Why would you do that?” or “What do you eat?” or my personal favorite, “That’s stupid.” I understand that being a vegetarian is a foreign concept to Freedom students. It’s something that makes me different, which apparently is not something many teenagers strive for, especially in a town where dinner comes from the previous day’s hunt. One of the only things I hate more than eating meat is teenage relationships. With Thanksgiving right around the corner, I’ve been getting a lot of new questions. Many questions are concerning what I will eat during the holiday centered around consuming a giant bird. No concern needed, dear readers; I’ll make it through just fine. While this Thanksgiving will differ from past years, I believe I will get the same enjoyment out of it. To me, this holiday is more about spending time with family. I had the unlucky fortune of being born last in the Patsch family tree, which means I’m the last to fly the nest. With my siblings spread all around, Thanksgiving and Christmas are really the only times we get to spend a significant amount of time together. It’s nice to be able to have everyone in one place to enjoy the holiday season. So while this holiday will be lacking in protein, I don’t expect it to be lacking in fun. I look forward to a holiday spent giving thanks, spending quality family time and eating many, many vegetables.