When Greg Mortenson set out to climb K2 in Pakistan, the world’s second-largest peak, he could never have imagined that the failure to reach his goal would have such important, positive ripple effects.
As Mortenson recounted in his book, Three Cups of Tea, he became disoriented during the climb and wandered into the Pakistani village of Korphe, where kind locals nursed him back to health. Filled with gratitude, Mortenson vowed to return and build them a school they desperately needed.
True to his word, he did return to build that school. And that one school led to the construction of an amazing 130 schools in Pakistan and neighboring Afghanistan, mainly for girls, through his Central Asia Institute. His extraordinary work has earned him scores of admirers in the two countries and now it has earned him something else: the ear of top military officials working in Afghanistan.
According to The New York Times, Gen. Stanley McChrystal sent an emotional email to Mortenson just nine hours before President Barack Obama fired him inside the Oval Office.
“If I’m not involved in the years ahead, (I) will take tremendous comfort in knowing people like you are helping Afghans build a future,” McChrystal wrote to Mortenson.
Gen. David Petraeus, McChrystal’s replacement, had lunch with Mortenson, and his book is practically required reading for many top US military officials in Afghanistan — many who received the book from their wives, who devoured the inspirational story.
The US military isn’t exactly known for its reliance on untrained civilians for help, especially civilians like Mortenson, who were critical of the US invasion of Afghanistan after 9/11. But it certainly is heartening that two unlikely entities are teaming up in the name of educating locals and creating a lasting peace.
Photo of Greg Mortenson in Afghanistan by Central Asia Institute via Wikimedia Commons.