One Helping Hand
“I had no idea what education was, but now I think it is like water. It is important for everything in life.” (145) Greg Mortenson’s memoir, Three Cups of Tea, was about Greg’s personal experience climbing the summit of a mountain called K2. Greg got lost and got separated from the rest of the group he was climbing with. He later on found a village that was in desperate need of a little help.

Greg was climbing the summit of a mountain called K2 when he took a wrong turn. He was scared of dying and was just plain scared. He wandered thinking he could find his path again. He walked to the river that he remembered passing and stumbled upon a village that needed his help. Greg learned all about the customs of Pakistan people and learned about their learning conditions. The people in the village only had the ground and sticks as their supplies. People from the village saved Greg’s life and he knew he had to pay them back with something. He didn’t have any money on him, and he didn’t know what to do. He finally thought of building a school for all of the kids. The people loved that idea, and soon Greg was on his way back to America.

When Greg returned to Pakistan with the money and supplies needed for a school, he discovered one more challenge. There was a bridge that needed to be built in order to get to the school. Greg got supplies for that and finished the bridge in no time. People from the village helped Greg carry bricks, cement, and other equipment across the newly built bridge.

Greg had faced some challenges while building the school but knew he had to get it done. People all around Pakistan heard about what an American man was doing for this one lonely village and wanted to get in touch with him. Greg finished the school he first started with and got fundraisers to help him fund the money for the future schools he was going to build.

Greg later built many schools all around Pakistan for many different reasons. He built schools for girls, climbers, and other things. Although Greg was only one person, he was helping many other people.

The theme of this book is, “One person is able to help hundreds of people in different ways.” This relates to the book because Greg didn’t mean to get lost while climbing but did. He had to find a way to pay back the village he found and discovered he could build a school for the kids. Everyone around Pakistan heard and wanted Greg to build a school for them too. He got the money and supplies and headed back over to Pakistan. He built many schools for just girls. At that time girls weren’t allowed to go to school. Greg had changed all that up with building a school for girls. This was allowing not just boys but also girls to become successful in life and to become something. Greg had changed many lives in his visits to Pakistan. “Now we must make their sacrifice worthwhile, we must turn those stones into schools.” (155) Greg made lives of many desperate and poor people happy again. If Greg hadn’t taken a wrong turn of his climb, he would have never met the people that he had helped.

Greg later got honored for all of his accomplishments and knew he had to keep going. Building schools in Pakistan was his dream, and he couldn’t let the kids of Pakistan down. He wanted every kid to have a chance to learn and choose what they want to be when they grow up. He gave girls a chance to get out of work and do something they loved which was learning.

Greg may think that building schools is something small but in reality, it is helping many children who wouldn’t usually get a chance in even knowing how to count to 10. Greg is helping many people every day.