Essay 1: Brainstorming

In my first essay, I want to focus on what the novel Three Cups of Tea has taught me about the importance of education, especially for young girls. I really believe that people, especially in the United States, take good education for granted and don't realize what a privilege it is for us to have clean and safe schools with excellent educators who are passionate about what they do. Hopefully, I can make people more aware of what I believe Mortenson's true message is behind his powerful story.

In the novel, Mortenson takes us on a journey as he works to bring better education & learning environments to Pakistan. I believe that his reason for doing this, has to do not only with his good heart & caring nature, but also with his past hardships with his sister Christa. He was very determined to help her and make sure that she had the same opportunities as everyone else, and I think that helping her made him realize how important it is for everyone to have equal opportunities.

I think that Mortenson believes that by helping people, especially young girls, get a better education, he is giving them the chance to have a better life and change their communities. When a young girl is educated, she is given the tools necessary to teach her family, and make their lives better. This, in time, will make communities in Pakistan and throughout the world grow and soon be better and more advanced than ever before.

Hopefully, as communities become more educated they will be able to heal broken relationships with other communities. This will help the world become safer and more peaceful and to evolve into a world that we have never dreamed of before. This seems like a far-reaching dream, but as Mortenson is proving, it is possible.

A quote that I am planning to use in my essay is "You can hand out condoms, drop bombs, build roads, or put in electricity, but until the girls are educated, a society won't change". This quote really illustrates the important role that a girl's education plays in a community. This is a very important topic that everyone should be more aware of, and that is what I hope to accomplish in my essay.