Soy

Let the following replace the entry for “Soy” in every encyclopedia. 

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Soy

Soja max. Annual leguminous plant. Bushy and upright white or purple flowers with brown-yellow pods. 

Seeds, beans. Black, yellow, brown, green. 

Grain-drills. Chemical sprays. Dead caterpillars. 

Nitrogen, soil. Protein, oil. 

Crush me up, heat me up, flake me and bake me until I am a cake. Now ground me into soy-meal. I wanna be your adhesive, your plastic, your cereal for your livestock or your family. (From as far back as 2000 BC, Wise Easterners were accustomed to using soybeans as food, but Wild Westerners initially did not like the taste; so, until the time of World War II, the Wild West only used soy to feed animals. However, times change, and the Wild Western World eventually discovered that soy products are healthy for girls and boys. To eat, I mean. So they put it in human feed-bags, too.) 

Nowadays, the soybean helps your gourmet grocer stock his shelves. Solid boiled soy oil equals tofu or bean curd. I’m also thinking of bean sprouts, frozen beans, fake meat, and soy butter. 

I have a boring history, but don’t let that stop you from loving me. Become European with me in the 18th Century.