Tiger in a Lifeboat
Discovering India, Deconstructing Faith, and Deciding to Trust Again
After a shattering betrayal tore through her faith and identity, writer Lauren Cibene clung to the fragments of a life once totally defined by evangelicalism. In the wake of her betrayal, she wrestled with anxiety, borderline agoraphobia, and depression while her faith community tried to rush through her grief. That’s when Cibene spontaneously abandoned the familiar for the India.
As she journies through the riot of Kolkata, the markets of Jaipur, the sacred ghats of Varanasi, and more, she confronts the ghosts of her past, the wounds of her present, and the specter of her future. Every encounter—fumbling with a sari in a dim rest stop bathroom, staring into the flames of funeral pyres, holding the hands of people living with leprosy—puts her one step closer to reclaiming her trust in humanity, the Divine, and herself.
Like Pi in Life of Pi, she finds an unlikely survival companion—her own fierce, resilient spirit, a tigress waiting to be unleashed. Tiger in a Lifeboat is an intimate, immersive, and honest testament to travel’s transformative power, the reclaiming of self-trust in a world that often strips it away, and the slow, ultimately beautiful journey back to oneself.
The Author
Meet Lauren.
A doubtful-yet-hopeful Jesus person. Writing through doubt and despair towards a better way.
Equal parts doubter and believer, Lauren Cibene explores the messy middle of faith, hope, and humanity through writing. Her work embraces life’s big questions with courage and candor, creating space for readers to find their own stories within hers.
By day, Lauren crafts copy that converts; by night, she pens essays on Substack, where thoughtful conversations about faith, creativity, and resilience unfold. Lauren lives in north Georgia with her husband, Tim, and their very spoiled labradoodle, Linus.