Dear Prudence,
I’m a vegan. I try not to be preachy about it and only bring it up if someone asks. But I do have a firm rule about not having meat in my home. I live alone in a small place and don’t entertain often, so this is quite easy. Recently, my mother and her husband came to visit. He brought a rotisserie chicken. I said, “Finish your lunch, it’s fine, but just to let you know: This is a meat-free home.” He acted as though I was being unreasonable and went to eat his lunch in the park down the street, as if I had thrown him out. (I live in the Southern Hemisphere, so it is the middle of winter.) He is now refusing to ever visit again and doesn’t want me to come to their house because “there’s meat in it.” My mother admits that he is being unreasonable but thinks I should apologize to him “for the sake of peace.” Am I being unreasonable in setting this rule for my home? Should I apologize to him, even though it would be entirely for my mother’s sake?
—Chicken and Egg