Silky Burnside

Coach

Month: April 2025

Discussing existential issues with my father over birthday dinner

The wooden furnishings of the steakhouse were bathed in warm, ambient light. I guided the heavy steak knife through a $75 medium rare rib-eye steak, dipped it generously in blue-cheese sauce and felt it melt in my mouth. Dad was communicating more openly than usual,...

Is love a universal principle that is always appropriate?

I crunched into one of the big, green grapes that Gran gave me. It tasted like the perfect combination of superior genetics, good agriculture and optimal ripeness. Gran had had a rough year - her brother, all her old friends and even her pet cat had died. "We went to...

Taking the scenic route

The scene of the state forest was gorgeous, rushing by. I could feel the crisp wind brushing against my skin and running through my hair. It was my week off from university because I had just finished the first term of my MBA. Escaping to the country is my way of...

Did you ever feel that you couldn’t trust yourself? 

“Ritalin” I told the chemist.  From Ireland, she was beautiful.  But beauty is in the eye of the beholder. 8 coffees and the maximum dose of Ritalin, but at least I felt like I could control my anxiety. That’s new.  I haven’t always felt this way. In...