A mountaineer.
An emergency nurse.
An American.
A country called Pakistan.
It was kind of weird , wasn't it.?
To find an American nurse(not a military) , a man in Pakistan. It has nothing to do with weapons, guns or terror.
Greg Mortenson aka the man, the emergency nurse, the American, have spent about a quarter (if not half) of his life in Pakistan and Afghanistan . He went there since 1993 and now more than a decade has passed, he still found a lot of things to do there.
Who was this guy by the way, and why on earth he liked Pakistan so much.
His love for education brought him, repeatedly to Pakistan and Afghanistan.He built schools, many of them and particularly for girls and women.
Don't you think it's amazing?
He was an ordinary man, love to climb mountain and failed his mission to climb the most challenging mountain in Pakistan but that failure brought him to many successes after that.Not saying he managed to climb more mountains since then but his victory was more precious than that - He got to build many schools for local people.
He had to 'beg" to secure enough fund, he had to sell almost everything to buy the flight tickets, he had to sleep by the streets to ensure the ends met and he lost his girlfriend ...All in the expense to fulfill his promises to Haji Ali at the Korphe village , a very remote area in Pakistan (not sure if google earth can locate it).
One school lead to another...He gained more trust , he felt more confident, and the good news spread fast.
He managed to convince the stakeholders in America, yet refused fund from the military.
He was warmly welcomed by the local people but still some of them targeted him as a prey.
He was once detained by Taliban and American soldiers when Sept 11 tragedy made a change in the political landscape globally.
He faced all challenges one can imagine.
Yet he made friends with Shiite and Sunni Muslim alike.And his mission continues until now.
As Muslims, honestly I tried to reserve my 'suspicion" to all the good things American have to say about themselves.Somehow I know he meant good.I did not see any preaching of Christianity along the way and I dont think Pakistanis will easily follow Christian just because one of them made school for their girls.
But....deep in my hearts..how I wish more Muslims will be like him..
Helping others to grasp for education, regardless of the geographical boundaries and political or tribal belief.
Where were all the mega-rich oil tycoon nearby?
Where were all the Muslim preachers across the globe?
I'm sure money will not be a major problems once you know who to get.
And I'm also sure knowledge is not a problem at all as we have a lot of scholars in many fields right now.
I really got inspired by his effort.Having to endure long, tireless and challenging journeys just for the sake of empower people particularly girls and women.
And I hope his effort being followed by all of us..Muslims all over the world.
Allahu'alam
Ummuzulfa
1 March 2010
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