My senior project is officially complete. I turned in my paper, had an oral interview with both of my readers, and got everything signed and squared away. Reflecting back upon the last school year, I have changed dramatically, largely due to my senior project.
After spending three months eating entirely local and organic foods, I began to conduct my research, around the holidays. In many ways my discoveries made me happy and proud to have committed myself to this chosen diet, and in other instances, I realized issues that I hadn't previously considered, like animal slaughtering, and the morality and health effects of consuming animals and their products. Since the new year I have been enjoying a vegan diet, which has continued to evolve as well. I learned more about the nature of food, and the ways in which cooking affects nutrients. I have since adopted an almost entirely raw vegan diet. I don't want to commit myself to 100% raw foods because it can be socially isolating (as I experienced during my project...), but I nevertheless prepare the vast majority of my food from organic fruits, vegetables, nuts, and seeds. I have not limited myself to local ingredients, however, for northwestern Pennsylvania cannot adequately support the diet I have chosen, especially during this time of year. As the weather continues to warm, I intend to obtain most of my produce locally, and grow some myself this summer.
My raw vegan diet has increased my love and "infatuation" with food, nutrition, and sustainability. I feel connected to the earth, and morally satisfied to have removed animals and their products from my diet. This has allowed me to feel spiritually rejuvenated, and my diet and lifestyle inspire within me vitality, satisfaction, pleasure, peacefulness, and energy. I intend to continue to explore these feelings resulting from all that my diet entails - on an updated blog. I have grown so much since I first created this blog as a means of documenting my senior project, and I need to adapt my site accordingly. When my new blog is up and running I'll post it on here, in case anyone is interested in hearing more about my culinary adventures and emotional responses.
In the meantime, the following link is my final paper: My Senior Project
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