A CHANCE TO MAKE A CHANGE

Reading has always been an integral part of my life. It truly has shaped me as a person. For me, reading provides an adventure and the ability to get insight into opportunities not readily available to one’s self. I read books on varying topics to keep myself informed on important and not so important issues, or sometimes simply to escape the rigors of everyday living. My favorite reads have ranged from John Irving’s A Prayer for Owen Meany (which made me laugh out loud but also think) to David Halberstam’s epic book about the Korean War, The Coldest Winter: America and the Korean War (a book that provided me with a glimpse of a bleak time in the history of this country.)

Most books I have read leave an impact on me, but one of the most recent has left quite an everlasting impression on me and this book is Three Cups of Tea by Greg Mortenson and David Oliver Relin. It is a story of will and desire, a story of passion and commitment, of one man’s goal to make something better. The book is the story of mountain climber Greg Mortenson. Mortenson was so taken by the hospitality he was shown in a small Pakistani village after a failed attempt at climbing K2, he decides to build the village a school to provide the village’s children a better chance of life.

This blog is not a review. I will not reveal anything more about the book. But go out and find a copy and read it, you will be rewarded. The book has given me the courage to say that I can help and here at Zapwater, we are rewarded with such a chance, after one year of service we can dedicate a week volunteering. I now intend to take advantage of this great Zapwater perk. I may not be heading to Pakistan any time soon but like Mortenson, I would like to do something, so now my adventure begins.

John Delaney
Office Manager /Special Projects Manager