Both Nena and I recently read Three Cups of Tea by Greg Mortenson. For those who don’t know about the book it is the story of how Greg, who was attempting to climb K2, the second highest mountain in the world, ending up building dozens of school in Pakistan and Afghanistan. The book is on the best sellers list and we have been telling everyone we can to read it.
His story is so compelling for two reasons. The first is the old theme of a person’s struggle to overcome adversity. In Greg’s case the adversity takes many forms; personal, physical, and cultural. The second reason is it tells the story of the people living in tribal areas of northern Pakistan and Afghanistan. Greg give these people a humanity that balances the demonization of them that has happened in this country since 9/11.
His book is compelling because it show how the efforts of one man can change the lives of thousands of people. He has not only changed the lives of the people in Pakistan and Afghanistan, but the lives of anyone who reads the book. By bringing some understanding and humanity to people half-a-world away, maybe we can find ways to solve problem without using violence.
Greg started the Central Asia Institute to build school using local resources and labor. Many of the schools are for girls. The girls are more likely to stay in remote villages as the young men leave. By training the girls in basic hygiene, the death rate of children can be cut significantly.
As a teacher I was struck by the story of the children gathering in a open field to do their lesson; they were writing in the dirt because they did not have any writing materials. The village was so poor they had to split the $1.00 a-day fee for the teacher with another village.
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