THE WRITER’S CORNER…The Tragedy That Inspired An Author’s Work

Oct 07, 2018 Book Review…, Features / Columnists

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Featuring Author and Humanitarian Caron Asgarali
Interviewer: Glenville Ashby, PhD

An unlikely victim of gun violence Caron Asgarali miraculous survival is dramatically captured in From Lion to Lamb: A Spiritual Journey. Her critically acclaimed book gracefully chronicles how a life-threatening incident strengthened her faith in God and the goodness of humanity.
In this interview Asgarali shares her views on life’s purpose, forgiveness, redemption and how that fateful encounter with evil transformed her life for the better.

Glenville Ashby (GA): After the tragic incident did your faith ever waver?

Caron Asgarali (CA): I was brought up in the Presbyterian faith. During my late teenage years and beyond, I still held firmly to that faith…however I always felt that my life was missing something. Just before the incident I found myself praying more sincerely and emotionally asking for an intervention, for direction to know God’s purpose. On the night of the incident, even as I was being transported to hospital, as I felt my lifeline slipping with every drop of blood that was leaking profusely from the open wound in my face, I placed my life in God’s Hands.
GA: Why was it necessary to write From Lion to Lamb?

CA: At the hospital, during the weeks when verbal communication was impossible for me, I wrote. I wrote notes to my mother, my son, my brothers at first. When I left the hospital, I started to write a few posts on a blog.
Writing became therapy for me. Soon I saw the possibility of writing a book to share the experience but that first attempt did not impress me. Nine months after the incident when the full impact of the incident hit me, I slipped into Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. Through medical and psychological therapy, I was able to pull myself together after a while. While recuperating, I was enlightened to re-write my story but this time it would be a story with meaning. The story would be used to imbue hope to others who had or would face difficult times in life and it would be based on the Beatitudes from the Sermon on the Mount found in the New Testament in the Holy Bible. From Lion to Lamb was deemed necessary to inspire others to overcome, to have hope and to promote Universal principles of peace, love, compassion and forgiveness.

GA: You mentioned in your book becoming a channel for the Holy Spirit. Please elaborate.

CA: I clearly remember the Sunday night in January 2014 when I was inspired to write From Lion to Lamb. I was still being treated for PTSD, That night, I had the usual trouble falling asleep and when I did I had terrible flashbacks and nightmares. However very early in the morning I awoke with a clear mind and a distinct instruction to write the story in the way I described. There was no booming voice, no soft voice in my ear but the instruction was clear and imperative. Even the title of the book was inspired.

GA: Why do bad things happen to the innocent?

CA: This question has great depth and requires a lot of soul searching and understanding. This earth is governed by two opposing forces, good and evil. Sometimes bad has to happen for the power, strength, mercy and grace of God to be displayed and felt. I believe too that our lives are to be lived in the knowledge that there will always be good times and bad times. We must welcome our challenges because by our reactions to them, we can be drawn closer to God and can experience exponential growth as compassionate and caring individuals.
GA: What were some of the psychological effects of the incident?

CA: Just about nine months after, when the major physical work was done, the many challenges hit me: not going back to teaching; losing some friends; having to live with this new face for the rest of my life; with a changed financial situation; with having to sell my car and; with difficulty speaking. I began to have episodes of uncontrollable crying, lack of sleep, sleeping too much, nightmares, flashbacks, not wanting to face people, not wanting to nourish myself, worrying constantly. I wanted to scream out aloud at times.
GA: Outside of faith what role did professional therapy play in your rehabilitation?

CA: Depression and anxiety, regardless of the reason, are mental health challenges that must be managed by either by medical or psychological therapy When I recognized that I was sinking into depression, I sought professional help. Without that help, I cannot honestly say that I would have been able to move forward with my life. This is one of the reasons I am now the President of the Mental Health Association of Trinidad and Tobago. Faith is also an integral part of every aspect of my life.

GA: If you had the opportunity to talk to your assailants what would you say?

CA: It is not just what is seen when someone is shot but the damage that is unseen. The trauma of gun violence affects an individual, a family, a community, a society and a nation by extension. The effect on children, including their own children, if they have any, is so much greater; it affects them mentally, intellectually, emotionally and this is reflected in their development. Most of all, I would want them to know that there is a God in whom I believe and that through His grace and mercy and I am able to forgive them for the hurt and pain they have caused me and that He loves them and wants them to love Him too.

GA: How do you define the concepts of good and evil?

CA: Good to me is as simple as being caring, compassionate, humble and forgiving. Bad to me is both cultivated and innate. It may be borne out of environmental factors but it can have far deeper roots than that. It represents in my mind, anything that results in hurt and pain to others, self and God.

GA: Is it realistic to believe that the most heinous among us can be redeemed?
CA: Naïvely, I sometimes think it is possible that some of the most heinous among us can be redeemed but realistically I do not. In a previous question I answered that there are two forces of good and bad and much as I always want to believe that we are all intrinsically good, I believe that there are some who may lie outside the boundary of what is considered good.

GA: Do you believe in preordainment?

CA: My ordeal changed my life. Was it preordained? Would my life have remained the same if the ordeal did not happen? I do know that it did change my life and that my experiences as a result of that ordeal should not be without some worthwhile outcome.

GA: What does the future hold for Caron Asgarali?

CA: My intention is to raise awareness on the ripple effect of gun violence, to advocate for peace and to teach resilience building skills. My desire is to focus on young people; they are our most vulnerable and their futures will be determined to a large extent on what is transferred to them by the philosophies and examples of their elders as well as their individual choices.

Feedback: [email protected] or follow him on Twitter@glenvilleashby

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