Frederico Sawabini (photo), the author of the book Por que Eu Decidi Viver? (Why Have I Decided to Live?), has always been linked to spiritual issues. He was born in the Brazilian city of Niterói, in the state of Rio de Janeiro, and has a degree in Nautical Sciences. He is a volunteer worker at the Casa de Batuíra youth centre in the neighbouring city of São Gonçalo, where he carries out a number of activities. In this interview, he speaks about his early days in Spiritism and about his book, published by IDE.

When did you become a Spiritist?

My mother was Catholic but later converted to Umbanda [an Afro-Brazilian religion] when I was still a young child. She opened an Umbanda Centre, which I used to attend regularly. I developed my mediumship there but I felt the need of a theoretical framework to explain what was going on. My mother developed Alzheimer’s and I had to close the Umbanda Centre. I had read a Spiritist book, Memories of a Suicide, and was quite impressed. When I was in my 20s I began attending Spiritist talks and meetings. But I only found myself when I first came to the Casa de Batuíra Centre. I was impressed by the amazing work they carried out with 100 children of 50 families living below the poverty line. I began to get involved, started to play the piano in the main room and eventually became a regular volunteer worker. My whole family now attends the activities there.

How did you come up with the idea of writing the book Por que eu decidi viver?

In 2011 was a volunteer at the CVV helpline in Niterói for seven months. I gave counselling to people who were considering committing suicide. I liked the approach, which was based on empathetic listening, without censoring anyone or giving directions. But I felt that wasn’t enough and had the idea of writing the book. The aim was to write a non-religious, non-self-help book in the format of a novel. It should be written in a direct style and it should deal with a range of interesting issues, such as the value of life, how to tackle suicide, family relationships and all the pains and joys, wins and defeats that are an essential part of the learning and growth process in our lives.

What did you expect to achieve with the book?

The main goal is to help people who are going down and have begun considering shortening their lives through suicide, which is the wrong choice. After all, as big as our pain is, it will never surpass our will power and our capacity to overcome it. We need, however, to seek help to work on our feelings and emotions so we can stand firm when facing our daily challenges. That’s why I created a story that people would find easy to identify with. The main character is a normal person, the language used is simple and fast so that readers from all ages, religious backgrounds and background can access. This is a very serious problem, which needs to be well understood so we are able to be helped and to help others. Another goal of the book is to demonstrate that relatives and friends will be able to carry on with their lives and overcome the huge pain of loss if someone close to them commits suicide. But for that they will need determination, perseverance, discipline and faith.

How did you feel during the period when you prepared the book?

I wrote this book little by little, during my lunch breaks at work. That enabled me to appreciate every wonderful step of the process, when I put on paper all the ideas that I had in my mind. I was careful to include the principles of Spiritism in a very subtle manner, as I want people from all regions and non-religious people too to read and enjoy the novel. We know that Spiritists, who know about the law of cause and effect and reincarnation, will be less susceptible to take their own lives. But many Spiritists commit what we call indirect suicide, shortening their lives because of their lifestyle. What I wanted to make very clear, even for those who don’t believe in those principles, is that it’s a mistake to think that shortening your life might have no consequences. That is a serious misunderstanding. I attempted to share some common experiences involving suicide through the dreams of the main character. Another important point I made, which is very important for the family members, is that the person who commits suicide isn’t looking for death. What they are doing is making a desperate, mistaken attempt of putting an end to their pain.

In an era when there are so many suicides on the planet, how can your book contribute to deal with this serious social problem?

Someone commits suicide somewhere in the world every 40 seconds. The latest data shows that most of them are either young or elderly. Many reasons can cause depression and lead people into considering taking their lives. I think the book will help many people because it is a novel with an interesting plot, without a religious or self-help tone. Many people who are not directly interested in the issue suicide will perhaps have an opportunity to come into contact with that matter. That will enable them to help others or to seek help if later in life they need it.