The last year and a half has been a bit of a whirlwind.
After three years as an assistant principal at an elementary school, I made the decision to move back into the classroom. Truth be told, the job never sat well with me. There’s a lot of great work to be done, and kids deserve the best. But the job itself is pretty negative.
Aside from my day job I was also working part-time as a Holistic Nutritionist, had a gorgeous wife, and two young sons. Nothing in my life was getting the attention it deserved.
Moving back into the classroom meant a more solid schedule. that made it easier for my wife to work her schedule around. It made it easier to consult with clients. And it meant that my nights with my family weren’t overshadowed by conflicts at work.
I moved back into the classroom. Taught 5th grade. Had a blast! Enjoyed the kids and the curriculum, and loved being able to go home and just be home.
At the end of the year, however, I gave up teaching. My oldest is starting kindergarten, my wife wants a daytime schedule so that she will be home with him in the evenings, and I want to focus on building my website and helping people adopt plant-based lifestyles. This also means that I get to stay home with our youngest son, which is incredible.
This fall has brought an incredible amount of uncertainty and excitement to my family and me. And I’m loving every minute of it!
While this is not my first article on this site, it is my first “blog” post.
I have a vision for what I want this site to become: a resource to anyone that wants to follow a healthy vegan lifestyle.
Some days will be blogs. Some days will be articles. But I commit to being here and growing this resource.
At times I may come off as preachy. I don’t mean to be. If you are here with me you’re already aware of the myriad reasons for choosing a whole-food, plant-based diet. But some of my articles will further expand on those reasons or open you up to new insights that you weren’t yet aware of.
Mostly I want to give you all the information you need to make your own best choices.
And I want to have a dialogue.
Whatever walk of life you come from, let’s move forward together, peacefully, without judgment, and for a better future.
Why am I vegan?
Because I have never felt better than I do while eating a vegan diet, no matter how much older I get.
Because I want a high quality of life for however long I’m here. I don’t want to ever be laid up from a heart attack, stroke, or cancer diagnosis. I want to continue training and competing well into my 90’s and beyond! I want to know that I can do whatever I want, physically, whenever I want. And I never want to reach a day when I can’t hold my kids. However old they get.
Because I don’t ever want to have to pretend I know who my loved ones are.
We get to make our own choices in this life. And I’m more than happy to give up some things in order to have an amazing quality of life.
Our whole world has been turned upside down over the past year and a half.
You absolutely get to come out of all of this with new perspective and changed in any way you see fit. Have the courage to be the person you want to be.
As for me, whatever this next chapter brings, I’m excited for!
How about you? Let me know who you are! What do you do? Are you active? An athlete? Why are you vegan? Or are you just starting, or thinking of starting, on that path?
Talk to you soon,
Matt
Plant-Based, Plant Built
