EAT…
Stones into Schools
As much as I was mesmerized by “Three Cups of Tea”, “Stones into School” continued my journey into the daily lives of the people of Afghanistan Pakistan
“Three Cups of Tea” ended with the words of his friend saying “We must turn these stones into schools, so they will not have died in vain.” While that is not a direct quote, it is the intent.
I have always realized education is important, but I never thought of it in terms of securing peace through out the world. The more I read, the more I understand and am touched by the people like Greg Mortenson who are willing to venture out and make it happen. Who knows what changes will come in the future because of his, and others like him, determination and willingness to do what ever it takes.
I finished both these books with a new understanding and a new determination, that if I can’t go and teach in Ethiopia Sudan
Perhaps we will learn that life isn’t just what we see on the news photos, it is for most people, a daily struggle to survive. They laugh and play with their children. They work hard to provide for their families. They strive to carry on family and cultural traditions. It is not just the soldiers, the dieing, the destruction we see.
So, here we go, off to Afghanistan
Studies from the World Bank indicate that juse one year of primary school can result in an income bump of 10 percent to 20 percent for women later in life….
Photo courtesy of Circle of Women. Org
We are committed to increasing access to education for women and girls. Why?
An educated girl is more likely to have her own income and to spend it on promoting her family's health and nutrition. She is more likely to extend her education to her children and to watch them escape the poverty cycle. She will have better opportunities to advocate for change in her community, whose needs she knows best.
Young women are the single biggest potential agents of change in the developing world.
“Jihad” is an Arabic word referring to a “struggle” that is undertaken as a means of perfecting oneself, improving society, or degeating the perceived enemies of Islan. In Muslim societies, a persone who has been manipulated into believing in extremist violence or terrorism often seeks the permission of his mother before he may join a military jihad, and educated women, as a rule, tend to withhold their blessings for such things.
Educations is one of the many basic values that Americans of all faiths share with Muslim people everywhere.
Greg Mortenson speaking of his friend and mentor Haji Ali: It (sharing three cups of tea) underscores the paramount importance of taking time to build relationships, while simultaneously affirming the basic truth that in order to get things done in this part of the world, it is essential to listen with humility to what others have to say.
Haji Ali never learned to read or write…he undertood that hope resides in the future, while perspective and wisdom are almost always found by looking to the past.
Islam Qale village. My first host family in Afghanistan Afghanistan
What is far more difficult-and sometimes more dangerous-is to start at the end of the road and work your way back. And for better or worse, that’s exactly what we do.
If an organization like the CAI (Central Asia Institute), dosen’t leapfrog directly into such places, another generation or two of girls will have lost the opportunity to attain literacy.
…the people who live in the last places – the people who are most neglected and the least valued by the larger world-often represent the best of who we are and the finest standard of what we are to become.
Some things to keep in mind in times of disaster assistance. Greg Mortenson describing the aftermath of the earthquake…
…Home rebuilding kits donated by the Turkish government after signifigant consultation with refugees on the ground…The kits, which the Tiurksh officials purchased in Pakistan, consisted of hammers, nails, shovels, saws, wire, corrugated sheet metal, and other essential building items so that people could fashion temporary shelters in their own villages instead of packing up and moving to a refugee camp.
…what the women really needed was an efficient source of cooking fuel…
…Clearly what these refugees needed was building materials with which to fabricate shelters to keep their livestock alive. Since no one had asked them, however, they were doing their best to improvise.
…expressions of international concern that failed to result in concrete action provoked feelings of betrayal and anger.
…unfortunately, some of the smartest and most effective assistance was provided by groups of Islamic militants.
…Amid the rush to provide tents, food and medical supplies, few of the western NGOs seemed to be giving much thought to schools. Based on past experience, however, the militant groups who were busy setting up their aid networks, fully understood the power of education under such circumstances.
Schools…
The key was to find one or two dedicated teachers around whom we could establish the schools…
…in each community we made a point of consulting with the elders and the parents in order to find out what they thought we needed.
When you take time to actually listen, with humility, to what people have to say, it’s amazing what you can learn.
Desks…
…in the minds of the children, desks provide concrete evidence that at least within the confines of their classroom, a degree of order, stability, and normalcy had returned to their lives. In a traumatized world where everything has been turned upside down and the ground itself had given way, a desk offer certitude. It was something you could trust.
Playgrounds…
dinner table conversation with Mortenson’s daughter Amira…
“Hey Dad, what kids of games do the children in your Kashmir schools play?”
“Um…I’m not sure…I honestly have no idea”
“Well, you should get those kids some jump ropes.”
“Dad, you don’t have playgrounds at all in your schools do you?”
“No”
“You should really put them in. All children need to play, especially ones that are suffering and hurting…”
(Ameria
The play and exercise brought joy and delight to them, and their enthusiasm spread like wildfire into the depressed communities.
An email from an American Colonel…
“I am convinced that the long-term solution to terrorists in general and Afghanistan Kolenda , US
A Message from Two Warriors…
“Only through a shared appreciation of the people’s culture, needs and hopes for the future can we hope ourselves to supplant the extremist narrative. We cannot capture hearts and minds. We must engage them; we must listen to them, one heart and one mind at a time.” Admiral Mike Mullen, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.
Greg Mortenson talking about the establishment of women’s vocational centers…
In the simple business model that Wakil had designed, the start up costs were minimal…Each literacy center would draw its students from the surrounding neighborhood so that the women would not have far to walk , and their husbands were less likely to object to their wives leaving the house for such brief periods, ,,,
Initially, these women came to learn to read and write, but as they acquired skills their ambitions began to expand radically. Others began to exchange information about dental hygene and reproductive health. From there the curriculm spilled into nutrition, diet and disese prevention…
Epilogue
Sitara "Star" School. Afghanistan
Image courtesy Central Asia Institute.
Greg Mortenson, talking about a failed attempt to reach the Kirghiz
In place of our help, what they needed most was the sense of empowerment that comes from knowing that they had done it on their own.
…Aside from our very first project in Korphe, no school is closer to my heart than the one in Bozi Gumbaz, because none was carved so directly and so indisputably from the bedrock of human dignity and self-worth.
…They had raised a beacon of hope that called out to the Kirghiz themselves but also to every village and town in Afghanistan where children yearn for education, and where fathers and mothers dream of building a school whose doors will open not only to their sons but also to their daughters.
PRAY…
Please join me in prayer for Greg Mortenson, The Central Asia Institute and all the others doing work in the harshest places on earth. Join me in praying for the work they are doing, for their courage and faith that keep them going even when the obstacles seem insurmountable and plans don’t work out. Pray that the work they are doing will show God’s love throughout the world.
I ask your prayers for the lives they are touching, that they may be filled with hope and peace and a better tomorrow. I pray that they know there is a world out here who cares and a God that loves them.
Pray for understanding and compassion on our part. Grant us wisdom to look beyond the harsh pictures and stories we are told by the news media and to realize that they are husbands and wives, children and families that go about their daily lives with the same hopes and dreams we have for the future – enough food on the table, homes that are safe and productive, a better world for our children.
I also pray, that they are able to hang on to their history and their culture and that they don’t become too westernized and their rich heritage and history are not lost for all time in this world of globalization.
I pray that we learn to learn from them; that more isn’t always better; that there is great joy and peace to be found in the simplest of living. That sometimes the greatest sense of accomplishment comes in taking time to do a job the old fashioned way, by using your hands, your heart and your ingenuity, rather than rushing to push a button and have it done for you.
I pray that we learn to turn the tv off, the computer off, all the electronics and try to live for a while in the simple light of a candle, to cook on an open fire, and enjoy the peace that comes with turning off the constant distractions and enjoy the peace that comes with reading a book and turning the pages with a child cuddled in our lap. That we relive the joy and laughter in the telling of old stories; that we pass our own heritage on to our children.
I pray for the peacemakers of the world. May God keep them safe and protected.
A good place to find more to pray for and about is the PCUSA website…Here’s a few links, if like me, you sometimes need a little help….
We pray...
Swords into Plowshares…Reflections of the Presbyterian Peacemaking Program and the Presbyterian Ministry at the United Nations…
Presbyterian News and Anouncements…
The Mission Yearbook for Prayer and Study…
LOVE…
I love learning about the love and dedication that is shared in the stories in books like “Three Cups of Tea” and “Stones into Schools” I love that they inspire me to do more, even when I sit here so wanting to go, and feel so tied to being here.
And, right now, I am LOVING the dinner I fixed tonight. When I first read the recipe I thought “ok, I’ll give it a try”. Now I am glad I did! It is perfect for a cold winter night. Best of all very little fat, no salt and lots of fresh veggies. Now how can you top that? Check out my new recipe page and try some for yourself….
And, yes, Alex (grandson #2), I did make that “weird” food again and you would like this even better than what we had last time from Uganda -.
Till next time,
Love,
Sharon
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