Nice to Meat You

While playing out in the yard, we hear several loud ‘pops.’

K: Mommy, what was that noise?

Mommy sighs. Long pause. Three more loud ‘pops.’

K: Mommy?

We live in the country, and those ‘pops’ are gunshots. People are walking the woods, looking for a deer to shoot, butcher and eat.

I’m taken off-guard and considering flat out lying. My son and I haven’t discussed guns yet, except for a brief, stumbling explanation while reading Dr. Seuss’s Thidwick the Big-Hearted Moose. (This was an important lesson to always read your kids’ books first, even if it is Dr. Seuss. The ending is a little…disconcerting.)

We also haven’t had an in-depth discussion of meat and how it arrives at our table.

And now here I am, standing in the yard, trying to figure out how to explain guns, hunting and eating animals all in one fell swoop to a three-year-old.

Here goes:

Mommy: That noise you heard was someone firing a gun. It makes a loud noise when a person shoots it.

K: What are they doing with the gun?

Mommy: They are using a gun to try to kill a deer.

K: Don’t they like deer?

Mommy: They want to kill them because they want to eat them. They like their meat.

K: Does it taste good?

Mommy: Yes.

K: How do they get the meat off of the deer?

Mommy: With a knife.

The questions continued for several weeks and meals. My son made the connection that the meat we eat also comes from an animal that was killed. He asks whether this makes the animal sad.

I was better prepared at this point. Reminding myself he’s three, I kept it simple by posing a question back to him: did he think the animal was sad when it was killed? He said yes. I told him that some people choose not to eat meat because they don’t like animals to be killed for food.

I told him that our family doesn’t eat meat very often, but when we do, we buy meat from farmers who treat their animals nicely, so that they have the best lives they can while they are still alive.

Now whenever we have meat, he clarifies what type of animal it comes from and whether it was killed. He then asks if it lived with a farmer who takes good care of the animals.

Whether to eat meat and other animal products is an individual decision, one I hope my son continues to think about as he grows up and develops his own food value system. There is a lot to think about, but for a preschooler, this is a start. I want to give my son the tools to think about food and its effect on himself, his community and beyond. It’s not just fuel; it’s a significant choice with far-reaching impacts.

If you do choose to eat meat, this recipe for Cabbage and Meat (of your choice) Over Noodles is a simple weeknight comfort food. The meat and garlic are savory, while the cabbage adds a touch of sweetness and a hefty dose of vitamins A and C. It’s a one dish affair—nothing else is necessary. For a vegetarian version, simply leave out the ground meat. The garlic, cabbage and noodles are delicious on their own.