May 15, 2008
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By Women’s Tennis Student-Athlete Amanda Taylor
Editor’s Note: Each month “Commodore Nation” will ask a varsity athlete to sound off on a point of personal interest. Taylor is a senior on Vanderbilt’s tennis team. She interned with Amnesty International last summer.
Helen Keller once said, “Life is either a daring adventure or it is nothing.”
It seems rare in our driven and pressurized culture that we have the opportunity, amid all the commitments, obligations and responsibilities of every day, to step outside our routine and turn life into an adventure. The world of a Vanderbilt student-athlete is extremely susceptible to this problem, as our efforts toward academics, sports, extracurriculars and more lock up most of our time and energy. It’s a blessed life, but a demanding one, particularly if we want to take Ms. Keller’s advice.
However, in 2007 when my Human and Organizational Development major required me to find a summer internship, I stumbled upon my chance to ditch the routine and stretch myself in ways I never had before. I thus chose a city I’d never been to, where I didn’t know a soul, with an organization I had pitifully little knowledge of — it was fantastic. The political scientist in me steered my applications right to Washington, D.C., and the future community organizer in me found some much-needed nonprofit experience in Amnesty International, USA.
Though I was armed with little more than enthusiasm for my internship, the wonderful people I worked for took me into their family without hesitation. Amnesty International is the largest human rights advocacy organization in the world with more than 2.2 million members; my job consisted of communicating with members, organizing events, recruiting AI leaders and conducting interviews. I even hosted a rap concert and rally on Capitol Hill to promote the AI cause. I learned quickly and with sincere interest about the many people around the world in need of a voice and the passionate and dedicated individuals who spend their lives in pursuit of providing one for them.
I also fell in love with D.C. immediately. I had an amazing roommate in a tremendously horrible and dirty Georgetown basement. I took the bus to work, which provided me a priceless view of the White House every morning. On a tour of the Capitol building I ran into quite a few Congressmen who made this political science nerd quite star-struck. I worked out in Georgetown University’s gym, and every Saturday morning I’d watch their basketball team, including Tyler Crawford and Roy Hibbert, play pickup or run drills. It was incredible how diving headfirst into the unfamiliar made every little thing an adventure.
I can hardly expect to be able to convey my gratitude for the whole experience. I’d imagine though, if Helen Keller were offering up more advice, it’d be to show appreciation by returning to the “routine” with a whole heart and the spirit to find what’s extraordinary within the ordinary.