Hi there! I’m Meg Brennan and here is my fancy bio pic, which I love and adore, despite the Herculean effort surrounding its accomplishment. Thank you, Maureen Porto. You’re a magician. While I love this photo, it also serves as a reminder to continue doing things outside my comfort zone. Let me explain.

Not included in this image are the many months prior, during which I anxiously attempted to lose weight, obsessed over my clothing, and worried about the whiteness of my teeth. I was on the verge of cancelling this session multiple times because I was consumed by the future fear of “being seen”. This may sound bizarre, or it may sound familiar. Have you ever found yourself planning to do something audacious and bold, then on the verge of its launch, find yourself making up reasons to avoid the thing you’ve planned and longed to do? Angry that once again, here you are clawing your way back to “normal” — sweaty, frustrated, embarrassed, gasping for air, and promising your tender heart that you’d never put it in another precarious position again? Yep, me too. 😬

Living that way is exhausting and not all that fun, nor is it useful. Frankly I’m tired of it — maybe you are too. Here’s the thing I know for sure: growth and expansion occur inside the audaciousness; the magic of living is in that sweet and frightening space between the known and the unknown. The Bud and The Bloom is my attempt to become comfortable in the discomfort, trying new skills, doing things I’ve never done before, showing up with my full self, meeting new people, and being seen, all while being kind to myself. I hope you’ll join me out here on the limb; it may be wobbly, but the views are incredible.

♥️ - Meg