"Three Cups of Tea" and the Value of Education

Today I finished reading “Three Cups of Tea” by Greg Mortenson and find myself amazingly inspired. It is a book which every American should read, most especially teachers. Mortenson, along with his comrades in Pakistan and Afghanistan appreciate the value of an education and the power it holds for change.
Recently, Gen. Petraeus reportedly sent Mortenson an email with three key-points which he gleaned from the book. The keypoints for me come from three Himalayan’s which were noted in the book:

• A quote from the Bhutan king – “true measure of a nation’s success is not gross national product but ‘gross national happiness’” pg. 120

• Speaking of his village, Haji Ali, the illiterate, elder leader of Korphe claimed “I’ll pay any price so they have the education they deserve”. Mortenson reflected , “Here was this illiterate man who’d hardly ever left his little village in the Karakoram. Yet he was the wisest man I’ve ever met.” Pg. 153

• Pakistani general, Bashir Baz – “The enemy is ignorance. The only way to defeat it is to build relationships with these people, to draw them into the modern world with education and business.” Pg. 310