That word is the title of the first chapter of "Three Cups of Tea," adventurer and activist Greg Mortenson's book about his quest to build a school in a small Pakistani village.
When Mortenson took the manuscript of the book to his publisher, eyebrows were raised. "In America," Mortenson recalled the publisher saying, "you never start a book with the word failure.' It's bound to fail."
But to the 50-year-old Mortenson, "failure" isn't a dirty word. In fact, it's failure that's granted him some of his biggest successes. Mortenson was the keynote speaker at Fairfield University's convocation for incoming freshmen, held Friday at Alumni Hall. All the freshman were required to read "Three Cups of Tea" before starting classes.
The book, which Mortenson co-wrote with journalist David Oliver Relin, was released in 2006 and eventually became a New York Times best-seller. In March, the book was the subject of the Fairfield Public Library's "One Town, One Read" in which all town residents are encouraged to read and discuss the same book.
For more than a decade, Mortenson has worked to educate children in Afghanistan. In that time, he's helped build 78 schools, which provide education for more than 28,000 children.
In his introduction of the author, Fairfield University President Jeffrey von Arx told the new freshmen they were required to read Mortenson's book in hopes
However, Mortenson said none of his accomplishments would have been possible without failure. In 1993, Mortenson, a nurse by profession and an accomplished climber, vowed to scale Pakistan's K2, the world's second-highest mountain. The climb was intended as a tribute to his sister, Christa, who died from a massive seizure after a lifelong struggle with epilepsy.
The attempt failed, and the aborted climb left Mortenson ill and exhausted. He sought refuge in the nearby village of Korphe. While there, he noticed 84 children, writing in the dirt with sticks. They were doing their schoolwork.
The sight moved Mortenson, as did a request by a young Pakistani girl for him to build a school in the village. Mortenson quickly promised to help, then tried to fulfill that promise. That quest, too, initially failed.
He wrote to 580 celebrities, telling them of the situation in Korphe and asked for donations. He received one return letter, from TV journalist Tom Brokaw, who contributed $100. Mortenson said, following the book's success, the journalist felt embarrassed by his small contribution. Mortenson assured him that the donation helped his cause.
"I didn't have the guts to tell him that maybe he could write me another check," quipped Mortenson.
Mortenson's effort finally took off after his mother's elementary school class raised $623 in pennies for the project. It was the start of his "Pennies for Peace" program, in which schools, community groups and others donate pennies to help buy school supplies for children overseas. The donation also encouraged adults to start contributing, and the effort moved forward.
Educating the children of Pakistan and Afghanistan has been rewarding for Mortenson, but it's also been dangerous. He's been shot at, kidnapped and endured fatwahs and a CIA investigation. He's also faced death threats from Americans who don't approve of his educating Muslim children.
But Mortenson and many others see education as the key to ending terrorism and promoting peace. That's particularly true of educating girls in Muslim countries, he said. It's a population that was long ignored, due to attitudes about women in those countries. Yet educating girls is essential to transforming society.
Mortenson, who spent his childhood in Africa, likes to quote an African proverb: "If you educate a boy, you educate an individual. If you educate a girl, you educate a community."
Fairfield's new freshmen weren't the only ones who gathered to hear Mortenson speak. Staff, faculty and various community members also packed Alumni Hall. Those in attendance also included a sixth-grade class from the Six to Six Magnet School in Bridgeport.
The class's teacher is Mary Nelson, a recent Fairfield University graduate who said "Three Cups of Tea" inspired her to become an educator. When she heard Mortenson was speaking, she decided to bring her class. She's read them the book's first 15 chapters, and said they've really connected with it.
"I wasn't sure if the book was over their heads, but they've really responded to the human being [Mortenson] is," she said.
For more information on "Three Cups of Tea" and Mortenson's efforts to promote education, visit www.threecupsoftea.com.
Font Resize
