"We are having something new for dinner tonight" my mother said.
It was 1982, and I was 14. Meat and potatoes was the staple of our household at dinner time. Deviating from the norm was quite exciting, so we all sat down at the dinner table with great anticipation. My mother proudly served up dinner to each of us, and once she sat down we all dug in. What did we dig into? It appeared to be Beef Stroganoff, which in itself would be new for the non adventurous, homogenous Fisher clan, but at the first bite, one knew that it wasn't beef. My mother's creation that night was Soy Stroganoff. It was the beginning of the years my roomate has now touted as the "Fisher Family Soy Project" after hearing me reminisce of past soy feasts. My mother had just become a distributor for a soy foods company that made a variety of meals from all over the world. There was a Mexican meal, an Italian meal, Pizza with soy cheese, pudding, hot chocolate, breads, brownies, - the food options were endless, and all tasted a little bit the same. Why did she do it? Because my parents are health nuts (you should see them now, they are extremely spry) and because it was good for the environment, and cruelty free. We were a soy family for 6 more years after that first fateful meal. It was a hard path to follow sometimes, especially during my formative teen years. When friends came over, they always questioned if they were eating something part of the "project". They were never initiated into the project, but I do admit that sometimes I miss the soy years.
Unfortunately, my soy memories were recently tainted, after being faced by the graffiti I came across near my apartment.
Who would have known soy kills. My catholic guilt nags at me whenever I walk by. To all those that have died at the hand of the Fishers and the family soy project, you have my sincerest apologies.
