A Letter to My Future Tribe

hope4usall

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Joined
Apr 26, 2025
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4
Age
47
Location
Danville, VA
Lifestyle
  1. Vegan
Dear Kindred Spirits,

I know you are out there. I can feel your sorrow, your yearning, your strength. As I sit in stillness, drawing calm from the earth, I feel your pull — a shared ache, a shared hope.

You are mothers, fathers, children, brothers, sisters, aunts, uncles, and grandparents — family that has been cleaved from its tribe. You, too, feel lost in a world that feels increasingly hostile. You build your inner strength for each encounter with the outside — cautious, armored, but still kind.

You seek community but find no authenticity in the spaces offered. You try to say yes more often, to be more open, yet find yourself feeling more alone, more adrift. You cry for your children, wishing you could gift them the peace and acceptance they deserve. You witness the waste, the self-absorption, the carelessness, and feel yourself drifting farther from the world you once knew.

And still, your heart beats in rhythm with something older, something sacred.
You long for a life that honors the rhythms of nature.
You believe in the inherent value of all life.
You live intentionally. You hold yourself accountable.

I know you because I am you. You are my tribe — our tribe — our family. And it is time for us to find one another.

We can build something real together.
We can create a life of purpose and authenticity, free from the noise and dependency of modern systems.
We can nurture our land, our bodies, and our spirits.
We can raise our children in a community that values honesty, compassion, and the miracle of life itself.
We can create, build, teach, love — not for followers, not for subscriptions, but for the simple joy of being alive and connected.

I am reaching out to you now.
If these words resonate with your soul, if you, too, long for a different way of living — reach back.

Let us gather.
Let us find one another.
Let us build the life our hearts know is possible.

If you feel called, please connect with me. Together, we can plant the first seeds of something beautiful — something lasting.

With love, hope, and strength,

Quinn Steele
 
Hi Quinn ,
welcome . My partner and l live high on a mountain on 30 acres of beautiful natural forest habitat , and we share the space with lots of wildlife .
We are frugal , basic-living vegans and yes , we live intentionally .. We live according to our ethical -core - be kind to all beings . Treat all beings the way we wish to be treated .. This can be a challenge with ticks and other tiny beings that attach themselves to us - the very removal of them kills them , usually ... A Jainist might be horrified !:) However we are also practical vegans ,in that we realise that whenever we go out in the car we probably kill tiny beings accidentally ..
It's the intention that matters the most .
We live in tune with nature , as much as is possible for two oldies ( I'm 65 and my partner is 70) and we watch as humanity is devolving .. By that I mean that a lot of humans are going backwards in their consciousness , and can't even treat others of their own species nicely - never mind any other species .

Connecting deeply human to human seems to be a rare thing these days .. at least my partner and l have each other to connect with on that deeper level .. So l feel lucky ..
I hope this reply feels like a tribal connection for you .. I certainly know what it's like to feel like an alien in this world .. Until l found my partner l felt lost in a world of tribes that l didn't fit into , and didn't want to fit into ..
To see the world soooo differently to most others can be a very lonely space indeed ..

Lots of love and friendship from
Ruthie ..
 
Hi Quinn ,
welcome . My partner and l live high on a mountain on 30 acres of beautiful natural forest habitat , and we share the space with lots of wildlife .
We are frugal , basic-living vegans and yes , we live intentionally .. We live according to our ethical -core - be kind to all beings . Treat all beings the way we wish to be treated .. This can be a challenge with ticks and other tiny beings that attach themselves to us - the very removal of them kills them , usually ... A Jainist might be horrified !:) However we are also practical vegans ,in that we realise that whenever we go out in the car we probably kill tiny beings accidentally ..
It's the intention that matters the most .
We live in tune with nature , as much as is possible for two oldies ( I'm 65 and my partner is 70) and we watch as humanity is devolving .. By that I mean that a lot of humans are going backwards in their consciousness , and can't even treat others of their own species nicely - never mind any other species .

Connecting deeply human to human seems to be a rare thing these days .. at least my partner and l have each other to connect with on that deeper level .. So l feel lucky ..
I hope this reply feels like a tribal connection for you .. I certainly know what it's like to feel like an alien in this world .. Until l found my partner l felt lost in a world of tribes that l didn't fit into , and didn't want to fit into ..
To see the world soooo differently to most others can be a very lonely space indeed ..

Lots of love and friendship from
Ruthie ..
Hi Ruthie,
Thank you for your reply! I feel better knowing that you and your partner are out there, living with intention, humility and grace. My partner and I live on a few acres in Virginia and have made it a goal to boost our local ecosystem, small as it is. I love to see how many new species we have just after a few years here! We practice regenerative gardening and permaculture...and yes, I'm familiar with the battle with ticks! :laughing:

Inside, I mostly feel calm and settled. I feel connected to my local ecosystem and my family who lives within it (humans and all). It is a struggle to find the balance of connection / disconnection with children especially. I have 2 children, 10 and 12 and I want them to experience the height of what humanity is capable of - those who are curious, aware, interesting and interested, gentle, bold....; yet I also want to shield them from this culture of everything, everywhere, all at once - one that is so narrowly focused on the individual, that we cannot see our place in the bigger picture (not that I have that figured out...I simply make peace with the fact that knowledge isn't everything, lol).

My partner and I have found solace in one another as well, but as a family, we are isolated. In this rural, conservative area - we are also frequently challenged by the narrow mindedness and lack of curiosity of our community. There are silver linings, as most people are here out of love of the land...so we have a small area in common.

I long to have aunties and uncles for my children, who come from all walks of life and who are listening to the rhythms of the natural world yet also working to connect.

Thank you for sharing a bit of your world. I am happy to hear that you and your partner have each other and that the world is a bit cozier and welcoming for it.

Love and friendship back to you (both!)
Quinn
 
Hi again Quinn ,
thank you for sharing a part of your life and lifestyle , too .
I love what you said about knowledge - so many people think that knowledge is some kind of answer to life - but it's wisdom that holds the answers - not knowledge .. And wisdom tells us that " love is the answer " .. I quote that from one of my favourite songs .
Thank you on behalf of all beings , for improving your local eco-system .
And thank you for raising your children accordingly . We read Good News sites on line so we don't focus on the worst of humanity .. Maybe your children would be able to read some of those stories ?
We love the stories of kindness especially ..

Unfortunately , although we have neighbours nearby on their own rural properties , they all seem very busy ( being busy is a newish "problem" ) and are still caught up in the consumer -culture - and just view animals as slaves , ( like most other humans) unless they are wildlife ..

Anyway , l won't bombard you with too many words , but it would be nice to keep connecting in here .
Please feel free to talk to me about anything .. I've been a vegan for 48 years now - l was vegan way before most people even knew what that is .. And I have found a bit of wisdom over the years - not just about veganism of course - but about life in general .. Ahh the joys of ageing !

Take good care ,Quinn , and talk soon ,
with love from Ruthie xx
 
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Hi Ruthie,

Thanks for keeping in touch! I bet you are a wealth of knowledge and experience - I can tell already in how intentional you are with your words.

Would you be interested in connecting via email? I don't love sharing personal details about my family in a communal forum but would like to keep in touch if you are interested.

My email is fitsteele@gmail.com if you would like to send me a note. I can respond there to your last message - good things for me to think about!

with love from Quinn xx
 
WOW! Like, the heck did I just read!? 🤯🤯🤯 That was straight-up POETIC and resonated with my SOUL! The more I read, the more I was like DAMN this really applies to me and my life and my struggles and all that. :pensive: I spent so long trying to find those people out there who actually understood me and there were times I felt there was no one out there who felt the same way as I did about life. Anyways, I've been living off the land for a few years now, and it's given me a connection to nature I wish more people could UNDERSTAND!!!! 🪴🌲🌳