veganism: I really want my family and friends to be healthy and live long, happy lives. I get passionate about veganism and living healthy-I just need to know where that line is, so that I don't cross it and become over whelming.|||Educating is when they ask or willingly listen to what you have to say.. Forcing you beliefs is when express your opinion when not asked and you insist they live their lives according to what you want Education is a two way street.. "teachers" and "students" willingly listen to each other.. Ask yourself, are you willing to be educated by those whose belief system is different from yours? If you cannot extend that courtesy to them, you have no right to expect some in return. Also, an important part of education is a open mind and a willingness to accept that you may be wrong. Are you open to the idea that al your beliefs can or may be wrong?|||I am the same, if anyone brings up my "Crazy vegan ideas", i get into a heated lecture about animal cruelty and human health. I mean, eating meat supports starvation in Africa, i mean, how could anyone eat a steak with that on their conscience?|||Just stick to facts about veganism rather than say they are wrong. I tell people trying to lose weight that vegetarians/vegans seldom have weight problems, for example.|||If they ask,your educating. If you tell them about slaughterhouses in the middle of their stake dinner,your preaching. I used to constantly try to get my family to open their eyes to suffering, but they either didnt care, or had a go at me for ruining their appetite,so I gave up. Other people ask me about veganism, and are disgusted by the answer I give them. People handle thinks differently.If they want to be kept in the dark,let them, its not your job to shatter their allusions. You'll still have peace of mind|||I've found that my family are starting to ask more questions about the health benefits of being vegan. I've never pushed anything to them about animals & cruelty because I know they would just get upset or defensive & it wouldn't change their ideas. However, they are very interested in the health benefits. They always mention how healthy I look and they are now buying soy milk.|||This is a good question that I wish more people would ask. I am a vegetarian who was eating once with friends and a girl came up and started going on about them serving meat and how disgusted she was. (she failed to notice I hadn't put meat on my plate) and she went on and on about factory farming....information that spoiled my appetite even without meat on my plate....the moral? Be respectful which you sound like you are trying to do so good job to you. I would love to be vegan someday. Unfortunately I can't make that work right now due to eating from a dining hall most nights. That doesn't mean that I am uneducated either. The good news is that people can live healthy long lives with and without meat or animal products. If they don't ask, don't tell. If they do want to know about your lifestyle, you can tell them about what you DO eat rather than why you don't eat meat. Have them take a taste of some of your awesome veggie burgers and try those great tasting chickenless nuggets...and who can resist a tofu stirfry?|||Frankly, I find that the answer to your question isn't determined by you, but instead by your audience. It's highly subjective. You can say the same thing with the same amount of passion (or lack thereof) and so on and so forth, and one person will think you're just sharing who you are with them but another person will think you're shoving your beliefs down their throats (no pun intended). Anyway, so different people will always react according to their nature rather than according to what you say or how you say it. The line you seek is so difficult to find because it constantly moves around. My best advice would be to pay close attention to them and how they react to small things. Get a feel for your audience and work with that. Maybe see if you can get them to ask the questions you want to give the answers for. LOL, yeah I know this is kinda vague, but it always is with us humans. We're all so different. A trick I notice my therapist using sometimes is she'll respond to something I say with "Sounds like you..." "Must make you feel like...". Fill in the blanks with whatever sounds good. These sort of statements prompt elaboration from people and help to make them feel understood, which might make them more open to things you have to say.|||In this case, it's whether they ask or not. If someone asks (and isn't just making conversation), and you answer, you are educating them. If someone does not ask, you are definitely forcing your beliefs on them. If you suspect they only asked to be polite, chances are they'll think you're forcing your beliefs on them. Another vital component is whether you listen to/accept their reasons for eating meat. If you're not accepting their reasoning, even if you think it's stupid/wrong/bad, you are not "educating."|||I'm not vegetarian, but not wanting to hurt animals is just an excuse. People hurt animals by building houses, plowing fields. Even our electricity comes at the expense of animal lives. Vegans say you can live without meat, and apparantly that's true, but you can also survive without houses and electricity. People did it for centuries, living in either tents or caves. And yet, how many vegans are going to give up their houses or their electricity. The reason is because they enjoy them. Just like they claim we meat eaters get enjoyment at the expense of animal lives, they too get enjoyment at the expense of animal lives. If they truly believed what they are saying, they should have not only given up on meat, but on houses and electricity, and even health care as well.|||How's that saying go "you get more bee's with honey than vinegar" The metaphorical line that your speaking of is : When "they" (the relatives on Thanksgiving) Start asking you questions about being vegan/veggie. Just answer....period. don't elaborate,or put in your opinion...a brief response is all that's needed. That's just how you deal with people "ribbing you" and keeping yourself "guarded" You quote unquote "cross the line" when you start sharing your opinion . Just answer the question, don't give out any opinion on you eating diffrences, let them ask. I lead by example. When I go places they say I look so freekin' healthy and in shape, my cookin' "skills" are so exotic and "off the chart" by the time I have left I know they will be like "hey maybe I should try this "veggie thing".|||Education is providing information that is asked for. You can't force your beliefs on another adult, if you preach at them they will just avoid you.|||If they ask about it, tell them. Crossing the line is when you bring it up, tell them they "should" or you "wont die as soon" stuff like that, etc. Be quiet about your beliefs, if they want to change, they will ask you for info|||not diference