Dr. Ayana Hardaway

02/22/2025

I am my Sister’s keeper! 💛 So grateful to my SisStar, Dr. Brittany N. Glover, and the Department of Counseling and School Psychology at San Diego State University for inviting me to engage in Narrative Reclamation while sharing some of the writing from my book for their Black History Month program this past week! ✨

Healing resides in the stories we tell, and it’s always a pleasure being in community with educators and practitioners as we uplift and empower one another. 💫 Here’s to more spaces where our voices are heard and our histories are celebrated! 🖤📖

01/15/2025

📚 So, I am a lover of Black Speculative Fiction and Afrofuturist Art. If you know, you know! This design is inspired by Anyanwu, a Black Woman immortal & (God)dess created by Octavia E. Butler in her incredibly dope book “Wildseed”! 🖤✨

In my own book, I theorize about Shapeshifting as a type of freedom technology—and tracks how we navigate adversity. Like Anyanwu, we shapeshift to heal, protect, and rise above! 🔥🙌🏾

Swipe to see pages (and a poem!) from my book for those curious to learn more about my creative inspo & musings ✍🏾🧘🏾‍♀️

Do you know a Shapeshifter? Or an Octavia E. Butler fanatic who loves Speculative Fiction? Gift them a t-shirt!

Check out our latest Wildflowers & Co. merch! 🔥

📚 Link in bio!
🔗 https://www.iamyourbrandman.com/wildflowersandcomerch

01/15/2025

🚨 Merch Launch Alert!🚨

Hey Fam! 🎉 Wildflowers & Co. is officially dropping our merch collection!

So, what’s in store? Cozy, comfy, custom-printed tees that are perfect for whatever you’re rocking — whether it’s your favorite jeans, joggers, tights, or those “I’m just running into for a candle” vibes. These tees are designed for your weekend errands, while still looking fresh! 🙌🏾

But it’s not just about the look — it’s about supporting a Black-woman-owned (eow!) business that’s all about empowerment, healing, and creative storytelling. We’re here to inspire, uplift, and help others heal through their stories. 💫🖤

We’re a restorative org and also grateful to partner with Jaret at , a fellow alum and creative genius, who’s helping to make this happen! Not only does he support with production, but he also markets and sells your product! 💪🏾 If you’re thinking about expanding your own brand, hit him up! He’s got you covered with tees, merch, and more. 💥

Our designs aren’t just stylish — they’re intentional. They’re made to inspire and empower, just like the words they represent. Here’s a peek at some of our faves:

✨ Legends Tee/Hoodie: A tribute to Black women writers, scholars, and intellectuals who inspire me. My name in vibrant, high-vib(e)brational colors symbolizes the energy I put into everything I create. I am manifesting that I will one day be called a legend along with them.🖤

✨ Shapeshifting Tee: Inspired by the legendary Octavia Butler’s ‘Wild Seed’, this one’s especially created for Black women. It honors strength, transformation, and the power to protect ourselves — a nod to the immortal Black Woman, Anyanwu.

✨ Blackgirl Belonging Tee: Simple, powerful, and unapologetically real. Just read the shirt. 😉

Thank you all for the love and support — stay tuned for more designs coming soon! 💖

Shop now & be part of this journey with us. ✨

🔗 Link in bio! 💋

💻 Website: https://www.iamyourbrandman.com/wildflowersandcomerch

~ath

01/14/2025

✨ Mmmm. This winter solstice has been everything. A season of rest, travel, and soul-deep reading. Time spent protecting my energy, reflecting, and strategizing for the year ahead.

I emerged from hibernation last night to do something I’ve always dreamed of but never had the courage to try.

Last night was the first San Diego PoetrySlam of 2025, and it was an all-women’s slam! 🖤Something whispered to me—sign up.

Soo, I did!

Was I nervous? Sure. But that quickly faded. With every word, I realized more and more that this work, this story, isn’t about me at all.

I shared pieces of my story—and my mother’s—from my book. I wasn’t there to compete; I was there to crystallize moments, to offer a healing space for others who might need to hear what I had to say.

Never thought I’d take 2nd place. 🖤

Even better, my Soul Sista’s & Sorors & showed up with me to support, and their energy was everything! 🔺🖤

Art is a healing space, and I’m not sure who needs to hear this—but to the soul who does...

Do the thing.
Follow your promptings.
Act on your intuition.
Shoot your shot.

Your journey is someone’s roadmap, a guide for someone who needs the courage to just...

✨🖤 Release.

Want to hear more?
📕 Grab your copy of my book today. Link in bio! 💋

12/17/2024

12/17/2024

🌊 Behind the Scenes: La Jolla Beach Vibes 🏝️📚🎥

Earlier this summer, I worked on something special — a creative project and book trailer to capture some of the “Field Notes from My Journey.” I wanted to make sure it wasn’t just about the finished product, but also about the “process” of bringing my story and my mother’s story to life.

As a creative, it’s important for me to capture the raw, authentic moments behind the scenes — the things that show me “as me,” - not just as an author or a scholar.

I had the pleasure of working with , an insanely talented creative and videographer here in San Diego, to capture it all. When I met with IK, I told him about my book, the poetry, and my desire to bring my mother’s story to life. He definitely understood the assignment and helped me bring this vision to life near one of my favorite places...by the ocean. 🌊

Here’s a few clips & flicks from our shoot:
📸 Flick 1: Thinking of my mom before the sunset
🎬 Flick 2: Setting the scene - making magic happen
📖 Flick 3: Me reading my poem “Wildflowers”
📸 Flick 4: Shameless selfies in La Jolla — because why not?
🎥 Vid 5: Capturing the beauty of the moments in between
📖 Vid 6: A clip of me reading my poem “Real Sh*t”
🤦🏾‍♀️Vid 7: My fav one. Attempting to recap the shoot & start my first vlog post… but my phone ran out of storage mid-clip! Classic fail. I was always a clumsy jawn 🙃😂😩

Should I try vlogging this journey? Would y’all watch? Let me know if you wanna see more of the process as I continue to build this project from the ground up. 👀

Thanks for all the love and support. It means the world to me to share this with you. 🖤

- ath

12/10/2024

𝑸𝒖𝒆𝒆𝒏 𝑵𝒊𝒌𝒌𝒊 𝒘𝒂𝒔 𝒂 𝑮𝒓𝒂𝒏𝒅𝒅𝒂𝒖𝒈𝒉𝒕𝒆𝒓

Raised by her Grandmother; an Othermother.

A location of knowing, influenced by intergenerational gems that shape how those like us make meaning of and navigate the world.

‘Symphony of the Sphinx’ is timeless.

Read it.

Bookmark it.

Pass it on to your children in an effort to bridge backward this preservation of cultural memory.

Her gift with language is remarkable.
Her words transcend the page.
Her cadence tapping at our nostrils.

Words smelling like the weekend—
Smellin’ like Ajax, Bleach, Meatloaf, Okra, and Poundcake.

Left us smiling, full, and revived.
Opulent.
Effortless.

Cultural bursts on a page. ✨🖤

*

12/10/2024

✨beautiful transitions • 20-year reflections • cultural memory✨

On 10/28/2004, I had the honor of meeting Nikki Giovanni during her visit to West Chester University of Pennsylvania while I was an undergrad. As a member of the executive board for the Black Student Union, we partnered with the Frederick Douglass Institute to host her talk and the release of her latest book, ‘Quilting the Black-Eyed Pea: Poems and Not Quite Poems’. Meeting her and speaking with her was life-changing.

Black students gathered in Anderson Hall, marveling at her genius and the way she spoke truth to power. She spoke to us in our own dialect, commanding us to always remember our location. She urged us to think critically and examine what we knew. She told us to get our education, but never forgot who we are. Her poetic prose and sociopolitical critique were more than just poems—they were like darts, or rather, blueprints. Sets of instructions. Lessons. Her body work is archival. A preservation of cultural memory. She stretched my imagination that evening, bending time with her words. Her prose had me simultaneously thinking about space travel in the future, the belly of the slave ships during the Maafa (Middle Passage), and the intersection of history and possibility.

Her poem ‘Quilting the Black-Eyed Pea, We’re Going to Mars’ enchanted me, forcing me to consider what life on Mars could actually look like for Black Americans. Her poem was a light switch. It triggered memories in me long forgotten. About the worlds I created in the stars in my own mind as a gjrlchild.

Innocence recovered.

Over the past 20 years, and after engaging in ‘traditional research and writing,’ I found myself needing an outlet—a space to wonder. Nikki was part of the journey I was on and I would always return to her poem. I’ve threaded her wisdom and guidance into my own writing, and exploration of understanding.

Rest peacefully, Queen, and thank you for quilting our cultural traditions through language—ensuring that our location is always centered, never lost, and never forgotten.

~ath