Greg and Abdul were receiving the material for the school. Things were very chaotic as there were lots of people around and many things being delivered. At some point Greg noticed he could not find two of the items he knew had been delivered. It would not have been too hard for him to buy another of each, but his money was running low and he had to save it. I think credit should be given to Greg for this quote.
"Two of the most precious items-a carpenter's level and a weighted plumb line-were missing. Mortenson was sure he'd seen them delivered but he couldn't find them in the rapidly filling truck. Abdul led the search with fervor, heaving bags of concrete aside until he found the spot where they'd slipped to the bottom. He rolled them inside a cloth and gravely instructed the driver to shelter the tools safely in the cab all the way to Skardu.
Anyone in contruction knows how important building level is. If a building is not level it begins to deteriorate much faster. The quality of the materials is only part of the quality of the building. I picked this quote because Greg realized the importance of these two simple tools in the construction process. Without them the school would not be built properly and unable to last. Throughout the book so far there have been many struggles and Greg has not let them get in his way to achieve his goal. This is just another bump in the road that he has overcome so far.
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It is not the tools a man has but what a man does with his tools that tell what kind of man he is.
ReplyDeleteI like this quote as well, it's like he just keeps on going no matter what it takes to get through it. And, he wants to make sure they have the school, that is built correctly.
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