Today I experienced my first slaughter. I was the accomplice to taking the life of a pig. My job: stand by, wait for the deed to be done, take the rifle to a safe place and collect the blood. And later to help clean the animal. Photo Courtesy Eckholm Farm It seemed maybe grotesque, inhumane, and violent. But the reality is, I experienced something totally different. As a person who does not particularly find myself to be religious, this experience was definitely a spiritual one. It was the first time that I ever thanked the universe for providing food and felt that on a visceral level. I thanked the animal for his sacrifice to nourish us. I thanked the farmer who put a great deal of care in humanely raising the healthy pig. And I thanked the chef who performed the slaughter showing gratitude for the animal and to be sure it would not suffer through the process. The reality is, this is the process of every piece of meat that we ever eat. And when we go to the supermarket, as m