By Carla A. Carlisle & Ashley Eiland
Journey to the Son
Nonfiction Memoir | 146 Pages | Hardcover | ISBN: 978-1543971866
Journey to the Son is an emotionally riveting memoir that chronicles a woman’s eight-year battle with the system for the child she loves, who suffers from prolonged trauma caused by his birth mother, a victim herself of perpetual physical, emotional, and mental abuse.
Carla shares her painful, yet rewarding journey of motherhood to prompt discussions about trauma and its impact on children, who are placed in unsafe living conditions. Carla is partnering with private and public stakeholders to lead a movement that focuses on protecting children, like her son, by providing them safe and healthy environments to live in – what every child deserves.
“It’s alright to tell a man to lift himself by his own bootstraps, but it is cruel jest to say to a bootless man that he ought to lift himself by his own bootstraps.”
– Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
Synopsis
Carla A. Carlisle is a divorced African-American corporate executive who longs to be a mother after struggling with infertility for more than five years. She becomes a foster parent and takes in 10-day-old Devon, born two months prematurely to a mentally ill, drug-addicted mother, who suffers from untreated childhood trauma. Six months later the system gives Devon to his birth mother. Carla must decide to either give up or fight for her son.
Excerpt
The car isn’t safe. I’m not safe. I’m not safe. It’s the first time I’ve really let the thought sink into my brain. Every day that I’m with these people I am putting myself and my child in danger. I am not safe. I can’t help the tears that find their way down my cheeks. The anger, humiliation, and fear associated with being slapped like a child in front of my son digs into my soul with heat, with shame. No wonder he didn’t respect me. Through my passivity, I’d taught him that love and compassion were weaknesses easily slapped down by the person with the loudest voice. “He didn’t see nothing, Ms. Carla,” Montaya insisted as I unsnapped my seatbelt, fumbling with the door handle, needing to get out of the car.
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Author / Speaker / Mother / Advocate
Carla A. Carlisle
Carla A. Carlisle is an author, speaker, and child and mental health advocate. She started her activism as a result of her eight-year battle to save her son from further trauma.
Speaking Topics:
- Foster Care and Adoption
- Social Justice
- Trauma Informed (Generational Trauma)
- Path to Resiliency
- Culture
Co-Author / Mother
Ashley Eiland
Ashley Eiland is a mother and high school English teacher located in Auburn, Alabama. While reading will always be her first love, writing is her passion. Ashley loves helping others bring their stories to life.
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Contact
For speaking and media inquiries or to share your story, reach out via social media or please complete our form below:
Contact Carla
Connect via social media @CarlaACarlisle
#journeytotheson
Resources
Here are some resources that have been found helpful in North Carolina. There are many others; these are some Carla has learned from and grown with.
Justice Initiatives:
Mental Health America
of Central Carolinas:
Atrium Behavioral Health:
Living Waters FA:
Harris Consulting & Counseling:
Alexander Youth Network:
Adoption Matters:
Nick Cushing / Tom Bush Law Group:
Cardinal Innovations Healthcare:
Medicaid:
Thompson Family Focus:
Family Preservation Services
The Males Place:
The Meck / MecKidz:
Council for Children’s Rights:
Trauma Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapists
Trauma Informed Training:
Some available resources for Resource Parents
Rowan County DSS:
Mecklenburg County DSS:
Project 658:
Books to help children with behaviors and feelings:
Julia Cook’s Books for Kids:
Ty Allan Jackson’s Books for Kids: