We recently connected with Frances Martinez and have shared our conversation below.

Frances, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. We’d love to hear about a project that you’ve worked on that’s meant a lot to you.

AlMonía: Souls In Harmony is a queer community reclaiming spirituality for all! We organize and host a monthly, nation-wide, virtual event to embrace our spirituality and queerness. We facilitate a rotating community-led panel of speakers, artists, and practitioners that we feel offer helpful tools to add (or not) to your personal spiritual practice. We begin with guided breaths and a meditation, followed by a shared creative expression, a message, and a musical performance. We value our differences and our commonalities while inspiring others to share their unique gifts, creating the brave, spiritual space we all deserve.

Frances, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

Born into a strict pentecostal home my spirituality was a nurtured and natural part of me. As I grew into leadership positions within my church I started to understand the stance my church took on the LGBTQ+ community, and I was conflicted. Told by church leaders that I was touched by spirit, a natural Christian leader, I didn’t understand, how? How could I be all these things while feeling what I felt for the girl next door. If god didn’t approve of the LGBTQ+ community why did I feel so connected, why did “he” use me to bring “his” light and love to others? Of course I hid, my attraction for the same sex, my hate for dresses, make up and heels. I hid the most natural and true parts of myself and my light started to slowly fade. I went to church more, increased participation, immersed myself deeper in that environment chasing the light until I hated myself. I was self-harming, self-destructing and losing myself. In 2010 My mom kicked me out and I moved to NYC with my dad. I decided to recreate myself and created a whole other life. I stopped going to church, stopped praying, stopped being Christian. I wanted nothing to do with religion or spirituality since in my mind they were one and the same. Music has always been my comfort, my outlet, my everything: church choirs, family functions, & high school band. Music kept me alive and focused, I joined a reggae fusion band and partied my 20s away. I was out with my musical family and comfortable but yet, something was missing. My light still wasn’t shining as brightly as it once did. I was still chasing, still lost. In 2019 I left the band as I was starting to self-harm in new ways. I knew I needed to figure myself out. I went back to church. Well, I tried but I was out, in a relationship and not trying to hide my true self again. These churches were always trying to pray the gay away. Thats when it hit me… sitting smack in the middle of a homophobic sermon that religion and spirituality were not the same, and the path to reconnecting with my spiritual self began.

I took the practices I loved from my upbringing and mixed them with learned new ones. I removed organized religion from my beliefs and practice, I created rituals that suited to me and my needs. I sought out like minded individuals, read books, hired coaches, spoke to other spiritual practitioners and expanded my knowledge, my truth and my light. I started to speak openly and freely to anyone that would listen, that we deserve spiritual connection, we deserve spiritual community, we deserve to practice and gather safely. I was met with much resistance, fear, anger and longing. Longing from my community to reconnect, to gather, to have a spiritual home and so in 2021 the dream of AlMonía: Souls In Harmony was born. A collective of queer creatives reclaiming spirituality and inspiring others to take back their light, a light organized religion has constantly used to shame and challenge our community. It belongs to us too and AlMonía is here to help you take it back. Intention setting, meditation, prayer, creative expression, positive lessons/teachings and music are all spiritual expressions and practices. You will find this and so much more at one of our virtual gatherings. Our long term goal is to have a physical space and land to be able to hold our gatherings in person, as well as keeping it virtually accessible. We intend to work in collaboration with the earth, where we can host multifaceted spiritual, healing, wellbeing, music, art, and performance events and retreats. A brave, safe space for our queer community to be held, supported, and thrive.

I’m most proud of the work our growing community has put into themselves. Showing up monthly, reaching out for help, holding space to share and be vulnerable with others, blossoming friendships, & connections. To see the growth and the once dimmed lights shining though them bigger and brighter encourages us to keep going strong. It lets us know this is meaningful and purposeful work, work that is not just needed but wanted.

For you, what’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative?

The most rewarding aspect is creating a ripple of healing, love and support. Helping others, inspiring others to help each other, and so on and so on, and then feeling that ripple come back to you in your moment of need. Every word, every thought, every action has a ripple effect on this world and eventually it comes back to you. I am in awe of the support and nurturing the universe rewards me with and I love giving it back.

In your view, what can society to do to best support artists, creatives and a thriving creative ecosystem?

Society can best support a thriving creative ecosystem by being still, openminded and listening. Not just with your ears but with your spirit, your gut and if something doesn’t resonate with you then leave it be with respect and grace. Just because it wasn’t for you doesn’t mean its bad or wrong, its just not meant for you. There’s no need to spread hate or negativity leave it for the next person to find and receive as it resonates. We are so quick to judge, cancel, take personal and give our opinion that we don’t realize that we might be eradicating sometime of value and of service to someone else.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.almoniasoulsinharmony.org/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/almoniasoulsinharmony/
• Other: https://linktr.ee/AlmoniaSoulsInHarmony

Image Credits
Louis Polo Sasha Hawkins