THREE CUPS OF TEA

By Greg Mortenson and David Relin

A hero! An adventure story! A thrilling read! A promise fulfilled! One ordinary person really can change the world!!

Each of these exclamatory statements regard Greg Mortenson and his remarkable and ongoing project in Pakistan and Afghanistan to educate impoverished children in a remote and dangerous part of the world. More than an adventure story and more than a tale of hope, this book opens a window into a culture, religion and politics far removed from Morrison, Illinois. This book brings the third world and the fight on terrorism to a small, but awesome idea: “Fight terrorism with books, not bombs.”

Born in 1957 in Minnesota, Greg grew up on the slopes of Mt. Kilimanjaro. His father founded a Medical Center in Tanzania and his mother founded an international school. In 1992, Greg’s younger sister died from an epileptic seizure and to honor her memory, Greg climbed Pakistan’s K2, the world’s second highest mountain. However, he did not reach the top and on his descent became disoriented and lost his group. It was while wandering, alone and without food, water, or shelter, that he stumbled into a poor, desolate village where they nursed him back to health.

While in the village, Greg watched the 84 village children sitting outdoors, scratching their lessons into the dirt with sticks. The village was so very poor that it was unable to afford the $1.00 per day salary of a teacher. When he left the village, he promised that he would return to build them a school.

From that promise flowered a most incredible humanitarian project of modern time: his one-mission to counteract terrorism and extremism by building schools, especially for girls, throughout the breeding ground of the Taliban. “Though he would never say so himself, he has single handedly changed the lives of tens of thousands of children, and independently won more hearts and minds than all the official propaganda flooding the region.” (David Oliver Relin)

This book is such an eye-opener to a part of the world we will never see, but hear about continually in the news on terrorism or religious extremism. Greg Mortenson’s story is one of grit and determination. Its lesson is simple: one person can make a difference. And it is through ordinary people that lives and minds can be changed. This is a book that gives hope for our world and its people. Read it, Discuss it, and Think of its message.

(by Anne Frame, Guest Columnist)