In July of 2023 BoldJourney.com dropped an article highlighting Quynn, founder of Web of Life Animists. See full article here, and below is the article as well.
Quynn , so good to have you with us today. We’ve always been impressed with folks who have a very clear sense of purpose and so maybe we can jump right in and talk about how you found your purpose?
My purpose came to me with a head injury. 30 years ago, when I was 25 years old, I was hit on the head in a bizarre way, and in the days after it happened, I noticed that something had been shaken loose, or was beginning to be revealed. I began having profound and vivid night dreams, and I started hearing voices that were kind but firm, guiding me towards something about which I had no understanding. I had never heard inner voices before, and yet they were soothing, not scary. I received guidance to start taking note of what was happening to me, because it would be important to share with others later. I had no idea what they were talking about, but I felt called to follow the guidance.
Over the next months I had intense dreams and the dream characters began to show up in my recently begun meditation practice. I would hear incredibly direct messages and got the feeling I was being “taught” by them. One such message was to “keep practicing and you will learn how to do it”. I had no idea what “it” was, but I decided then that my purpose was to follow the trail of insights, signs, synchronicities and teachings that would lead me to what I am doing now, and still what is to come.
Great, so let’s take a few minutes and cover your story. What should folks know about you and what you do?
Over the last 30 years I have worked, step by step, to create what is now called Web of Life Animists. Animism is described as the original way of humanity, when we lived closely with the Earth and the sacred web of life. We all belong within this web, and we all matter.
Within that community of Earth honoring people in Tucson, AZ and beyond, I have honed my own training in the intuitive arts, and my unique brew of intuitive abilities. For the last 20 years I offer, what I now call “Spirit Bridge” Practitioner trainings where I assist people to hone their own intuitive gifts, as well as unlearning cultural and religious trauma around having these gifts. This is deeply rewarding work for me because when I was starting out I had a few humans who helped me as I found my way, but the direct teachings came through the voices within me. Now I help others listen to their inner guidance within a non-dogmatic community of kindred spirits.
Our Web of Life community hosts new and full moon labyrinth of light walks in Tucson, and our outdoor park located gatherings have been so helpful and sustaining through the Covid era, and they provide a beautiful way to honor the new and full moons.
We also host monthly healing clinics and ceremonies for the change of seasons. Our community has grown through Covid due to having to turn many of our events into online experiences during the last three years. Now people attend our online events and circles from many places, which is so helpful for those outside of Tucson, as well as those with busy lives and/or with mobility challenges.
We are happy to announce that in October we will host our first Web of Life online summit, with the theme of “Navigating our Onward Journey”.
There is so much advice out there about all the different skills and qualities folks need to develop in order to succeed in today’s highly competitive environment and often it can feel overwhelming. So, if we had to break it down to just the three that matter most, which three skills or qualities would you focus on?
Learning new skills and practicing those skills over time is how we grow. I am grateful that I was able to stay committed to the process of learning and growing, so to someone who is starting a new path I would say, if you love it, commit to the process, even though it seems to take way longer than you expect.
Creativity has been one of my passions since I was a child. Creative living is not only about a certain kind of “art”, or how something looks. I find that having a creative approach to life is a feeling that sustains joy and curiosity. I often say to those who are looking for a change in their life to look for the ways that they are creative, and follow that feeling, even though it brings out a creative approach that is new and/or unexpected.
Being willing to unlearn or set down behaviors, beliefs and ideas that have been handed down to us is so important right now. We have all absorbed so many unhelpful beliefs about ourselves, other people and the world around us that are hindering our progression as competent and kind human beings. Beliefs about what is “good” and “bad”, “real” and “make believe”, as well as ideas and behaviors related to other groups of human and non-human beings. If we are going to make the changes that need to be made in our world in the very near future, we need to admit that we have been taught poorly in a number of ways. The good thing is that we don’t have to resist that, we can simply set them down and decide to learn differently.
One of our goals is to help like-minded folks with similar goals connect and so before we go we want to ask if you are looking to partner or collab with others – and if so, what would make the ideal collaborator or partner?
There are two areas that are top of mind regarding the next steps in my lifelong endeavor to gather Animist community, collaborations and the challenge of “space”.
When I am working with others in groups or solo, we are in collaboration. My practice of “Animism” happens in collaboration with other humans, as well as other who live here too. After 23 years of existing and 15 years of being incorporated as a religious nonprofit, Web of Life as a community is at a point where it can expand, grow and evolve with new collaborations. Creations of beauty can be made. Important projects can be created. Growth happens with more energy. I trust that interested Animist oriented people will reach out with what interests them and we can see how our collaborations may intersect.
Since 2000, I have been in the position to rent multiple rooms or buildings to carry out the work of (what is now called) Web of Life Animists, and while the cost of renting physical space has always been a challenge, it has been workable. After the lockdown of Covid, we gave up the building we were renting (our first!), and downsized to a rented room in a larger complex. As many know, the last three years have had a lasting effect on small businesses and organizations.
Now that many lower end rental options are out of reach, but Covid has waned, I think again about dedicated space for community and wonder how it might come about. I trust that future collaborations will also bring spaces for gathering, healing and learning.
