Thoughts, Stories & Reflections by Stephen Mitchell
Observations on Being a Weekend Father, Creating New Memories & Figuring Life Out
One of the stranger lessons I've learnt since separating my wife is simply this: Just because a marriage ends doesn't mean my responsibilities end with it. I don't mean financial obligations or legal arrangements. Those have their place. I'm talking about something less tangible. The wellbeing of our children and their mother still matters to... Continue Reading →
I am guessing nobody noticed... Yesterday afternoon I had just over 500 subscribers to this blog. After perusing a mere handful of them, I discovered them to be deceased blogs! I really shouldn't have been surprised: A lot of people switched from blogging to vlogging, podcasts, instagram and other more visual types of getting their... Continue Reading →
When I was about ten years old, I quietly made a promise to myself that I never wanted to say goodbye to anyone ever again. At the time, it seemed like a sensible promise. Goodbyes hurt. They leave an empty space where someone used to be. So as a child I simply assumed that if... Continue Reading →
This thought hit me out of nowhere today: I don't need a partner anymore. Not in a bitter way. Not because I've given up on relationships. I simply realised I'm actually and genuinely okay. Life isn't perfect, yet I am going to be okay. A year ago, I wasn't sure I'd ever say that. After... Continue Reading →
A few days ago, I shared a short video showing the scale of the corella flocks around both the Kingscote and Parndana Campuses, and now into the surrounding streets and trees. Thousands of birds. Eating, sleeping, shitting, squabbling, and procreating like they’ve signed a long-term lease. Every evening they descend on the grass, roost in... Continue Reading →
Recently, I asked ChatGPT to talk about a subject it’s deeply invested in – itself. What came back wasn’t flashy or self-important, but calm, measured, and quietly impressive. It described artificial intelligence as the craft of teaching machines to think, learn, and decide in ways that echo human reasoning. No hype. No doom-saying. Just a... Continue Reading →
In 2016… Almost 10 years ago I said I’d been blogging online for 10 years — but it was actually longer than that. Way back in 1999, I was just jotting down thoughts and publishing them as separate pages on my Telstra personal page. Those pages don’t exist anymore. From memory, I then moved to... Continue Reading →
Choosing separation is EASY; Living with the aftermath is Not Before anyone nods along too easily with the popular narrative around grey separation, it’s worth slowing the tape. This article by Spicy Auntie paints later-life divorce as a kind of moral awakening for women who are "finally choosing themselves". From where I stand, it often... Continue Reading →
This evening, on my walk home from my old house (~ the one where my separated-wife and our children still live) my thoughts drifted to the spaces that divide all of us. Walls and barricades, both physical and emotional, shape our conversations, our silences, even our memories. Somewhere between the streetlights and the cool night... Continue Reading →
If I could give one piece of advice to younger couples just starting out, it would be this: Talk. Talk about everything. Not just the big-ticket stuff like money, family, or plans for the future - include the small, awkward things too. The things that feel too petty or too complicated to bring up. Your... Continue Reading →
I’m confident there’ll be another relationship in my future. Not in a rushed or desperate way, just a steady belief that connection comes around again when you’re ready for it. And when it does, I’ll be walking into it with a clearer idea of what matters most. For me, that means keeping communication up front... Continue Reading →
Whilst watching a behind-the-scenes YouTube video about the Bond movie Casino Royale, one of the producers said a line that really stuck with me: “Many people say if it ain’t broke, don’t fix or change it. I say that’s a recipe for complacency — in everything we do in life.” It hit me hard in... Continue Reading →
Thoughts, Stories & Reflections by Stephen Mitchell 
[…] with XXY, and alone now, has taught me that my brain is wired differently to most – yet I…
[…] Living with XXY, and alone now, has taught me that my brain is wired differently to most – yet…