I’ve been thoroughly enjoying the interesting Three Cups of Tea by Greg Mortenson and David Oliver Relin.
The book is nominally about a former Himalayan mountain climber (Mortenson) who narrowly escapes with his life and decides to dedicate his life to bringing schools to the poor communities surrounding the Himalayas. It has flavors of *Mountains Beyond Mountains* or Steve Reifenberg’s “Santiago’s Children” (excerpt here). It’s a tale of a first world do-gooder learning from the wisdom in the developing world.
But at a deeper level it’s all about the importance of social connections and social capital. Indeed the title refers to social capital. One of Mortenson’s mentors in Himalayan life (Haji Ali) tells him:
“If you want to thrive in Baltistan you must respect our ways.” he says locking up Mortenson’s account book, his level and his plumb line since Mortenson’s relentless pacing and efficiency and whip-cracking is driving the natives crazy. “The first time you share tea with a Balti, you are a stranger. The second time you take tea, you are an honored guest. The third time you share a cup of tea you become family, and for our family, we are prepared to do anything, even die….Doctor Greg, you must make time to share three cups of tea. We may be uneducated. But we are not stupid. We have lived and survived here for a long time.”
From Three Cups of Tea’s descriptions of Mortenson’s harrowing experiences in Waziristan to the appreciation the book gives one for the need of Mortenson to thread the alliances of tribes and determine whom can be trusted and to actively build ties, this book has lots to say about the global importance of social capital in the task of improving the lot of these Baltis or social development more generally.
For a distillation of the tale of bringing a school to Korphe (the first of Mortenson’s schools), read here. Read a harrowing excerpt from the book.
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