A letter from Wes and Rita Tillett in Lebanon
September 2010
The Tillett Tilt
Left to right: Tobias, Wes, Rita and Kidest. We were delighted to find this child-friendly park just a short drive from our place. Here we pose in front of a lovely fountain in which the kids can splash around a bit.
Even in America our last name can trip people up. It’s commonly misspelled with only one “t” on the end (“Tillet”). No big deal. Here in Lebanon we were presented with a new rendition of our last name: “Tilt.” We laughed the first time we read it. No big deal. But the more we think about it, the more we think it’s a pretty good nickname for us.
“Tilt” conjures up a few images in our minds.
If something is “tilted,” it’s not quite square. That well describes the angle of our bodies as we struggle to navigate Zahle’s mountainous roads by foot, or when we are doubled-over at the top of our stairs, trying to catch our breath.
If a perspective has a particular slant or “tilt” to it, it’s not really objective, nor parallel to reality. That’s certainly true of us. The angle of our own North American perspective is frequently incongruent to the Lebanese angle. Our lack of Arabic language proficiency makes us even more aware of just how odd we are here. Our everyday interaction with people and the world makes us more and more keenly cognizant of our cultural and personal “tilt.”
“Tilt” can also carry the notion of being overloaded. That fairly accurately indicates our emotional state in our first weeks of diving into the Middle East — overwhelmed — full tilt.
So here we are in Lebanon, The Tilt Family.
Update
Our apartment is framed in the center of the middle space created by the top four power lines angling through this photo. We live on the top floor of the day care building —: where the sunlight is still lighting the side of the building. Zahle is a lovely city, eh?
We’ve been in Lebanon almost three weeks. Those three weeks have been spent unpacking, setting up our apartment (shopping for everything from shampoo to rugs), meeting a few people and establishing our family life here. Every day our surroundings seem a little more familiar, a little less overwhelming, a little more manageable.
We have the sense that we are being carried along by God in this time of transition, as though the prayers of our family and friends are sustaining us. It’s difficult to put that sensation into words … even in the face of exhaustion (jet lag), bewilderment (culture shock) and monumental challenges (learning Arabic, learning the culture, learning new roles, etc.). We are experiencing an overriding sense of well-being. Safe, at peace, content. The Hebrew Scriptures have a word for it: “shalom.”
So, thank you so much for your prayers on our behalf. And please continue them! Aside from the grace of God, we sink. That’s always true, of course. It’s just we’re more alert to this reality in an unfamiliar context.
Blog
In case you’re not aware, or in case you need reminded, we have a web site/blog: Tillets in Lebanon.
We try to update it once a week (though we haven’t been able to lately, due to lack of an Internet connection). We try not to duplicate the information on the blog and the information we send out here in these newsletters. This is just FYI, in case you want to follow our journey online as well as in print.
Nerd Facts
I (Wes) was a rather nerdy kid. I used to read encyclopedias for fun (I know, I know …), and I would often show up at the dinner table with some new snippet of knowledge to share with the whole family. (Can’t you just imagine how excited my family was to receive this knowledge? Yeah …) My older brother “lovingly” entitled these little snippets “nerd facts” and would ask me, in that mocking tone all older siblings seem to perfect, “What’s the nerd fact for today, Wes?”
Well, undaunted by my older brother, I’m here with more nerd facts. Rather than trying to dump a whole lot of information about Lebanon on you at once, I’ll just share a “nerd fact” or two each newsletter. (I can almost feel your excitement …)
The nerd facts for this newsletter:
—Lebanon was a French colony but achieved its independence on November 22, 1943. Lebanon is considered a republic, and, traditionally, there is power sharing between the Christians, the Sunni Muslims and the Shi’ite Muslims: the President is a Maronite Christian; the Prime Minister is a Sunni Muslim; the Speaker of the Parliament is a Shiite Muslim.
—Instead of chicken soup, children in Lebanon are given rice with plain yogurt when they are unwell.
See? Weren’t those “nerd facts” at least a little bit interesting? Mock me if you want to, but I’ll be back with more nerd facts next newsletter!
Prayers
We give thanks for…
Safety. Our travels were difficult but uneventful. And we feel safe and secure here in the friendly city of Zahle.
Hospitality. Our brothers and sisters in Christ have been helpful in getting our feet underneath us here in Lebanon.
We seek grace for …
Wisdom. In relationships, in roles, in decisions — we need God’s guidance in every aspect of our lives. Please ask God to give us wisdom.
Courage. We must face failure and rejection in the short term if we are going to learn some language and culture and thereby be successful in the long term. Please ask God to help us overcome our fears and to enable us to live and love with our hearts and minds wide open here.
Thanks for caring about us enough to read through this newsletter! May God bless and protect and guide you.
Love,
“The Tilts” — Wes, Rita, Tobias and Kidest Tillett
