Online communities like Myspace.com are a fast growing trend among teenagers, and I am no exception. Myspace.com was, however, the last place I'd think to find something that would change my life. A friend had posted a bulletin regarding something called 'Invisible Children', so I clicked and watched a music video with a song by the Black Eyed Peas. I was stunned when it finished. I've visited relatives in a developing country often so I thought I knew what the world was like, but the music video brought something utterly new to my attention.

Neither Uganda, Africa, or child soldiers had ever crossed my mind before. Immediately I logged on to www.invisiblechildren.com and gathered some information. The next day at an Amnesty Club meeting at school I shared what I had seen the other day. I showed the same music video and the response was quiet, but resolved; our club began work on raising money. I will admit that I began our Amnesty Club on a whim; I wanted to make a name for myself at my school and, when I learned what Amnesty was, I thought that I could accomplish a lot of good while doing it. Just like everything else on my college resume, however, Amnesty is turning out to be quite hefty work.

I never regret having started Amnesty, but I acknowledge that the paperwork, the people, and the events have definitely worn on my initial belief that starting a club would be mostly fun, not work. If I had done another sort of club, like Movie Club or Yoga Club, maybe things would be different. I would not be watching a documentary on children wielding machetes or staying late after school doing paperwork. Yet when I envision the results of our labor I can't see myself having done something else with my time. When I do write up my college resume, I will include 'Founder of Amnesty Club' on a straight black line. While the words may seem simple on paper, I will know how those words and my commitment to this cause have affected me.