I started reading the book Three Cups of Tea by Greg Mortenson and David Oliver Relin last week on Wednesday. Normally i am not a person who likes to read or even has time to read but after i started this book i have been enjoying reading and making time for it. This book is about a man, Greg Mortenson, who has a hobby of climbing. He has climbed many mountains and started climbing at a young age with his dad when they lived in Africa as missionaries. He attempts climbing one of the worlds largest mountains K2 in Pakistan and fails to make it to the top. On his way down the mountain he drifts into an impoverished village in Pakistan made up of many people. They openly take him into their homes and treat him as family. He is so appreciative for their kindness and generosity and feels that he should do something to help. When he asks one of the leaders of the village to take him to the village school, he is amazed at what he sees. There is no school building, no teachers, and no supplies for the children to use. They are having school outside, teaching themselves, and using sticks and the ground to write. He promises the village that he will be back soon and that he will build them a school.
This is a video trailer that gives a summary of the book and explains the story very well!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bMxL0x7l4BU
The reason Mortenson climbed K2 in the first place was because of his sister who had passed away. He was climbing it in honor of her and planned to leave on of her necklaces at the summit of the mountain when he reached it. When his attempt to reach the top did not work out and he stumbled upon this village, he decided this would be something even more meaningful to do in honor of his sister. I think what he is doing is so awesome. After failing to reach the top of the mountain that he tried at for so long he could have just left and gave up and been upset about it but instead he is finding another way to honor his sister by helping others and doing good. After reading on a bit it told more about his past and his life in the states. He did not have very much money at all and had to join the military for two years so he could pay to get into college. Once he finished college he lived out of his car for a long time. Another thing that is cool about him is how even though he has barely anything himself, he is doing all that he can to help these people in Pakistan.
Obviously he does not have enough money to build this school with his own money. Once he returns back to the US he starts fundraising. His goal is to send out 500 letters to celebrities, famous people, and others who he think will donate for the school. Once he gets all of the letters sent out he waits around six months and still has no reply from anyone. He starts to get down but he doesn't give up. A friend told him about this man who was very wealthy that he should call and tell about the school he is planning to build. So he called this man and starts to tell him about the school. The man does not want to talk about the school or the plans but asks him how much the total cost would be. Mortenson tells him around 12,000 dollars and a few days later he gets a check in the mail for that amount and a note saying "Don't screw up." Ecstatic, he took the money and as soon as he could returned to Pakistan to start building the school. One thing i really like about Mortenson is how he sent out 500 letters and only got one reply, but that did not make him give up. I have been to Kenya, Africa three times in my life and started a project at an orphanage there. Once I came home from Kenya and had gone to this orphanage I wanted to support, I started writing letters and telling friends and family about what i had just seen and what could be done. Many people were generous and donated money for me to use to help the kids there. About a year later before i was going to over again, I decided to write a few letters to some corporations that I thought would be able to donate some items to these kids. Just like Mortenson, I wrote them telling them about the orphanage and what I thought could be done. I waited a few weeks and ended up getting one letter saying they could not give anything and no replies from the other. I was discouraged for a while about it. Seeing how Greg Mortenson kept going and did not give up when this happened really inspired me to do the same thing.
I am really excited to keep on reading and see what happens once the school starts getting built and how it impacts the village and what happens next. I'll keep you updated!
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