my name is arkansawblk

this is it, the season of the late bloomer has arrived. my name is Kendra Danielle and i go by the creative name of arkansawblk, that is pronounced [arkansaw ~ black] and soon i’ll be unveiling my character Lavender…stay tuned. 😊

i am a Little Rock, Arkansas native that identifies with the following: Afra-American, Black, an Arkansan, queer, multi-dimensional, creative, reserved womyn, free-spirited, manager of depression & anxiety, lover of the rain, naturalist, outdoorsy, Leo in Chiron, multi-faceted, business womyn, an urban farmer, living a heart-centered life and a metaphorical quilter.

i have had the privilege in my 32-year lifetime to serve as an educator, facilitator, artist, soccer coach, life coach, beekeeper, gardener, shepherd, and community convener in the Dominican Republic (2014-2017), Baltimore City (2017-2020) and currently, in Little Rock, AR (hopefully, i can add Durham, North Carolina to this list soon!) These days my service looks like being a creative, compassionate business womyn, an Afra-outdoorsy community events facilitator, a naturalist, a curator of restorative spaces and a student studying therapeutic horticulture.

My life has presented me with great opportunities to learn various methods of plant medicine, a variety of gardening techniques, and restorative facilitation skills styles from diverse and intergenerational perspectives.

However, some common threads that were prevalent in each place i called home was the pervasiveness of anti-Blackness, queer-phobia, sexism and of course the lack of space for genuine, heart-centered restorative conversations through difficult topics.

Living in Arkansas identifying how i mentioned before has been a challenge, yet, each challenge allows me to create spaces for folks like me; i like to call us the societal misfits—people who seek connection but have a hard time finding it with the everyday “normal” (normal is in quotes because what is normal anyways). It truly is an honor that people continue to show up to the events that i curate and design from my own imagination. There is no greater feeling than seeing invitees relax and feel comfortable enough to allow their inner-child out to play! My commitment to offering services of decolonized wellness, community building opportunities, and healing circles continue to fuel my purpose on this earth. It’s important to me.

i am grateful to the people that have followed and supported my journey and i extend the utmost welcome to the new folks! In arkansawblk’s orbit you’ll find stories about art, wellbeing, the great outdoors, magick, folklore, creative living, poetry on the complexities of life, the stories of Black folks and others things i find interesting and that i hope we can connect on. this is a new chapter in my life where i am learning that it’s okay to not have everything figured out so on this journey, you’ll see my triumphs and my mistakes and hopefully, together we can grow through it all.

please consider subscribing not only to support my artwork, but so we can expand each other’s world. there is much to learn from one another. talk soon!

xoxo,

arkansawblk