What I'm up to...

I PROMISE I'm not neglecting my blog. But, as I've mentioned at least a million times before, school is consuming all of my time. Which means I'm writing, probably a lot more than I did before, but just anything fun. I did go to a lecture on Friday (required for class, of course) but it was extremely interesting and inspirational. I had to write a paper about it (of course), and so I'll post what I wrote below:

Greg Mortenson’s presentation was more of an experience than an event. I bought Mr. Mortenson’s book a couple weeks ago after I decided to go to his lecture, but I haven’t read it yet. With this being said, I was a bit ignorant walking into the Concert Hall. I couldn’t believe the sheer amount of people that came to hear him speak. I was there early, just after six twenty, and already the main level seats were full and I was forced to the balcony. Sitting in my seat, I was crowded on both sides by attendees who were quite obviously not there because a class required them to be. The woman beside me had both of his books clutched in her lap and flipped through them, anxiously waiting for the program to start. Her book was a mess: covered in notes, underlined, highlighted and dog eared. When the lights finally dimmed, she leaned forward in her seat; trying to get as close to the stage as she possibly could.
When the program started, I felt strangely like I was part of a State of the Union address: the speaker would say something and the audience would burst into applause if they approved of it. Gerry Connolly’s speech felt more like a way to gain votes than to introduce Mortenson, and since C-SPAN was taping the event, it probably was. But my attitude towards the program changed as soon as Mortenson started speaking. He wasn’t someone looking for applause or approval. He convinced me that he was genuinely concerned with the children and communities in Afghanistan and Pakistan. His insight into their culture is priceless. If the leaders of our country would take the time to submerge themselves into the culture in the way that Mortenson has done, the war we’re fighting would become a much easier battle.
Mortenson showed a picture of the first school they built and it was heartwarming to see the smiling faces, but what really caught my eye was a poster on one of the walls depicting missiles and mines; just a reminder that their safety concerns are worlds apart from our own. The image that I will probably always remember is that of two men (with long dark beards, dressed in their traditional robes with the turbans, looking like they could be straight from the Taliban) swinging on the swing set in the playground for the children. In the picture, they’re smiling and laughing and made me realize that despite how different our cultures are, we have much in common.
On the outside, Greg Mortenson’s program was meant to promote his work with the Afghan and Pakistani children. But he accomplished much more. He is one man working to educate and make secure sections of a very insecure country, but in doing this he is also securing America’s future. Ignorance leads to terrorism, but by educating the future of Afghanistan and Pakistan, he’s working to eliminate future Taliban leaders. He’s working to create intelligent children who will reshape the economies of their countries so that they don’t live in fear.

That's a rough draft... its due on Thursday so I'll probably go back and make some edits before I turn it in for a grade... but there. Some interesting writing that I did for school. Now, back to the uninteresting stuff...