When Parmesan is put among people

I had a meeting at an Italian restaurant. And almost every time I go to a trattoria, I order homemade pasta with truffles. Plus green salad. It's something I don't do at home. So I indulge.

This time, the presentation surprised me. The pasta was brought in a large Parmesan wheel, tossed around in it to absorb the flavor, and only then served.

I dared to put this Parmesan-tossing incident in an Instagram story. And immediately I was admonished via a private message:

"Cheese = suffering and pollution. Just saying. Enjoy your time!"

I responded instinctively, although I had resolved not to do so anymore:

"Cheese = source of protein, calcium, etc.

Unethically produced cheese = suffering and pollution.

Since we don't know how ethically this particular cheese was produced, messages like yours, I believe, do more harm than good.

Awareness never comes through blaming and sarcasm. If your goal was somehow to wake me up to reality and make me aware of how bad cheese is...

If it was something else... then maybe it wouldn't be bad for you to reflect on it. Why did you actually feel the need to write to me? You don't have to answer me... Only yourself... If you want. And feel.

I am not vegan. Not yet. And I won't apologize for that. In the spirit of a more sustainable, conscious, and responsible lifestyle, I have made many changes in my diet and am giving up many products day by day. And I won't continue the justifications here.

Everyone has their own pace of change. And their own limits. Which I believe we should respect. If we don't want to end up killing each other in the street for what we eat, read, vote, worship, etc.

Blaming in private messages for some pasta tossed in Parmesan seems a bit much...

Balance is always key. At least for me.”

The interesting part is just beginning.

The meeting I was attending at the restaurant in question was about eco-anxiety. That intense emotional state of worry, this time due to climate change and the ecological disaster that may follow.

A subject that concerns me and that I want to delve into more deeply.

Well, eco-anxiety can also manifest through blaming and judging those around us for their choices, including dietary ones, in the context of environmental impact. Such behavior can be a way of managing anxiety or frustration related to ecological issues. And perhaps that was the trigger in the case of the person who felt the need to write to me.

But eco-anxiety can also bring the feeling that you're not doing enough for the environment or that you're not changing your behavior quickly enough. And perhaps that was the trigger that made me respond impulsively and so defensively.

As if religion, politics, sexual orientation weren't enough to make us fight among ourselves, I note with sadness that what we eat is becoming, day by day, a new occasion for conflict. Strong. Far too strong.

And I don't believe that veganism is about that. Respect for all living beings cannot exclude humans.