About me
An introvert at heart, I am most at home deep in the woods on a trail miles from nowhere. Living in western North Carolina, I am blessed in that I have a multitude of locations in which to hike and explore.
Dietary-wise, I have been a vegetarian since 1976. In the mid 80’s, my diet changed from ovo-lacto veggie to vegan.
The switch from a meat based diet to a veggie one was initially motivated by an after college experiment ("I wonder what a vegetarian diet is like"). I planned to go meatless for 6 months. The six months is now 36 years and counting .... after those first 6 months, I discovered I had lost weight for the first time in my life without trying and had saved money on my food bill (a REAL big deal for a just out of college gal!). Probably the most amazing discovery to me in that six month period was learning that I had much more variety in what I was eating, once I left the "meat-potato-vegetable" dinner routine.
One of my passions is to share vegan food that is tasty and visually appealing with omnivores, showing them that “vegan” equals “yum!!”. At my place of work, I frequently gets requests for “Brenda food”.
I work as a registered nurse at my local hospital and I see first hand the negative effects that an animal based diet has on the human body.
Spiritually, I am a Christian, and not tied to any specific denomination. My greatest hope and deepest prayer would be that when folks hear I am a Christian, that they don't start running for the nearest exit! Seems to me that whenever "Christians" make the headlines or make their presence known, it is in a negative context. Funny thing is, Jesus was anything but "religious". Kids loved him ... can you see kids being drawn to a sour, dogmatic, "you-better-do-this-or-else" type of person?? Nah, me neither.
When not at work in the hospital or in my kitchen, I love to hike the mountain trails around my western North Carolina home. My family includes my husband of 34 years and two dogs.
Contact Information
I welcome any comments, questions, or feedback you may have.
Please email to:
bjw at brendajwiley dot com