I gotta get this off my chest, been stewing on it for weeks, keeping me up at 2am scrolling this stupid forum. My sister’s getting married, big deal, right? And she asked me, ME, a chef, to do the catering. Which, fine, usually I’d be thrilled. But she wants a full-on traditional banquet. And when I say traditional, I mean serious meat. Like, roasted whole animals, heavy sauces, the works. Think old-country, what our grandparents ate, not some fancy fusion mess. And here’s the kicker – I’ve been vegan for over twenty years. Like, hardcore. My whole restaurant, my whole brand, everything is plants. My kids are practically raised on kale smoothies, you know? My neighbors probably think I sacrifice organic vegetables to a kombucha god. The thought of preparing all that… flesh. It makes my stomach clench. I’ve seen enough videos, read enough articles, I know what goes into it. But my sister, she just looks at me with those eyes, “It means so much to the family, brother. For Mom and Dad. It’s for the heritage.” And then Mom gets involved, and Dad starts in with how important it is to respect where we come from. And I just… I couldn’t say no. Not without making a HUGE fuss. A scene. And in our family, especially in front of all the cousins and aunts and uncles, that’s just NOT DONE. It’s like a cardinal sin, making waves. So I said yes. I actually SAID YES. Now I’m trying to figure out how to source all this stuff, how to even TOUCH it without feeling like I’m betraying everything I believe in. I’m already picturing the looks from my vegan friends if they ever found out. The judgment. Like I’m some kind of hypocrite. And I am, aren’t I? I’m going to be in a kitchen, probably for days, surrounded by all this meat, pretending it’s just another gig. My hands are going to be covered in… whatever. I keep telling myself it’s for family, for heritage, for the PARENTS. But it feels like a physical discomfort, a tightness in my chest when I even think about it. And then I think, maybe I’m overreacting. Maybe it’s just food. But it’s not just food, is it? It’s EVERYTHING.