My Time Here at Notre Dame, My Time Here in this World My Time Here at Notre Dame, My Time Here in this World College is a very dynamic environment. To rip a page out of Tolkien’s book, “I’m not the same Hobbit I once was.” I came to college unsure of what to expect. However, after spending a year here at Notre Dame, I can honestly tell myself in the mirror that my values, personality, and outlook on life has shifted for the better. Moreau has helped guide and shape my character this year. I believe that every student is an integral part of Notre Dame. Therefore, by learning about Notre Dame and her values in Moreau, we are learning about ourselves. Through my Moreau education discussing vulnerability, personal goals, and character, I have enhanced my understanding of who I am and who I want to become. With that in mind, I have revised my original mission statement to more closely reflect what I have learned this year. My mission statement is as follows: I am dedicated to imposing a positive impact on the lives of others through the intersection of my talents and passions, coupled with my education. My Catholic identity enables me to gather and share virtues and love with others. And, through this love, I strive to form long lasting, beneficial relationships. My accomplishments, achievements, and dedication towards success and a life of happiness, will inspire others to achieve great things. And, as I allow myself to be my most unforgettable and authentic self, I will inspire others to follow suit, so that they might find the truest expression of themselves. A life well-lived closely resembles a life lived for others. My time at Notre Dame has taught me that when one of us succeeds on the shoulders of others, we all succeed. I plan on carrying that mindset with me as I navigate my career, relationships, and involvements in life. Any act of service towards others will always deepen interpersonal relationships, which will expand my overall capacity to love and be loved. I’ve never been someone motivated by success. Rather, I see myself as motivated by achieving what I once considered to be beyond my own horizon. The beautiful thing about horizons is you can see the limit of where you came from, and where you have yet to go. I dedicate myself to reaching every goal I set for myself and not letting meaningless, short-lived appreciations of wealth or power shadow my otherwise keen objective of living a life well-lived. It is astounding that I have already completed a quarter of my Notre Dame academic experience. However, I plan to revisit this mission statement and grow my life plan as I see fit. Over the next three years, my revisitation will allow me to measure my growth and aptitude for doing good in this world. I plan on using my mission statement as a tool to make the most out of my next three years. I’ve divided my integration into three sections that I think best reflect my growth throughout this course. How I Will Treat Others At Notre Dame, I have been exposed to several different ways of life and identities. As a tour guide, I lead people around our beautiful campus, and while I could rattle off the statistics and figures they give me, I usually just rely on the campus and students to give the tour for me. It’s a big campus, but a small student body. It is beyond likely that I run into at least five people while giving a tour. Whether it’s a classmate, dorm mate, or friend, I’ll introduce them to the tour group and ask them a question about Notre Dame. I think that this is the best way to show how Notre Dame encompasses a wide variety of people with different backgrounds and opinions. Embracing humanity’s diversity is a key part of my mission statement, and I think developing stronger relationships with those different from me is going to be the way in which I grow those social muscles. As I said before, every student at Notre Dame deserves to be here, and Notre Dame would not be the same without each individual student. As Pope Francis said in his Ted Talk, “we are precious, each and every one of us. Each and every one of us is irreplaceable in the eyes of God” (“Why the only future worth building includes everyone” by Pope Francis - Moreau FYE Week 7). Therefore, every human being deserves to be treated with respect and dignity. I may disapprove of certain choices, or maybe I wouldn’t live my life the way someone else would, but that doesn’t mean that they are unwilling, and undeserving of my respect and appreciation. Over the next three years I will strive to embrace every aspect of humanity however different from my own. Last night I had the pleasure of inviting my grandma out to Notre Dame to watch Yo-yo Ma with me at the DeBartolo Performing Arts Center. We sat in the middle of an auditorium and she asked me questions about Notre Dame. But when she asked me if I thought it was diverse, I didn’t quite know what to say. Notre Dame is, undoubtedly, a very white and Catholic school. But her question got me thinking, does our diversity go deeper than skin, gender, or nationality? We most definitely have a diverse student body, and I plan on using my mission statement as a platform on which I can explore these communities. During my second philosophy class this semester, one of my classmates told me that once a week he does a “flinch”. He defined a “flinch” as something that pushes his comfort zone. Whether it’s attending a LGBT event even if he isn’t part of that community himself, biking to Michigan, or going to a random guys dorm, sitting in their lounge and making conversation, he wanted to push himself to meet new people and embrace others. I want to follow in his footsteps. There are a lot of aspects of humanity that I am vastly unfamiliar with. I want to engage with those who I may not normally interact with. I need to take this precious time I have in college to expand my horizons. One of my friends https://www.ted.com/talks/his_holiness_pope_francis_why_the_only_future_worth_building_includes_everyone/transcript recently came out. Since he did, it is almost like he has been freed of fear. I think he was scared of how others at a Catholic institution might perceive him, similar to Jacob Walsh in the Grotto article we read in week 10 (“Growing Up Gay and Catholic” by Jacob Walsh - Moreau FYE Week 10). However, I think it is easy for me as a straight white male to say that “diversity is more than skin deep” when there are serious racial and social issues facing minorities in this country and in our Notre Dame community. This semester I took my Writing and Rhetoric course as part of my core requirements. In the class, we spent the semester diving through the Prison Industrial Complex and its intricacies. I realized that I need a more active role in allyship towards minorities. Thinking back through the course, I think this most closely related to Dean Cole’s statement that “I cannot do this alone. Each of us must do what we can, wherever we are” (“I am George Floyd. Except, I can breathe. And I can do something.” by Dean G. Marcus Cole - Moreau FYE Week 12) This quote resembles a similar topic discussed during the first semester of Moreau. We learned that when it comes to sexual assault, no one has to do everything, but everyone has to do something. I think that I can do more. I say in my mission statement that when one of us succeeds, we all succeed. Likewise, when one of us doesn’t have the opportunity to succeed, none of us are fairly succeeding. I want to have more conversations like the ones we had in my Writing and Rhetoric class. As I said before, I have the privilege of being comfortable, when I should push myself out of my comfort zone. Robin DiAngelo says in her article that, “we become highly fragile in conversations about race” (“Why It’s So Hard to Talk to White People About Racism” by Robin DiAngelo - Moreau FYE Week 10). I am definitely made uncomfortable by conversations about race, but that’s not a bad thing. I should be made uncomfortable because I, whether I like it or not, need to do more to solve the problem. https://grottonetwork.com/keep-the-faith/community/reflective-narrative-about-being-gay-and-catholic/?utm_source=moreau&utm_medium=class&utm_campaign=spring_2022 https://law.nd.edu/news-events/news/dean-g-marcus-cole-i-am-george-floyd-except-i-can-breathe-and-i-can-do-something/ https://law.nd.edu/news-events/news/dean-g-marcus-cole-i-am-george-floyd-except-i-can-breathe-and-i-can-do-something/ https://docs.google.com/document/d/1bdVnfLDrJUJhd-4UtYb_kfRpcFgOoOeY7O1WT8_d3iw/edit https://docs.google.com/document/d/1bdVnfLDrJUJhd-4UtYb_kfRpcFgOoOeY7O1WT8_d3iw/edit Lastly, I need to use the lessons about humanity that I learn in school and apply them to the real world. The world is bigger than my 14 by 14 foot dorm in Duncan Hall. I must go out and understand that not everyone is equipped with the same privileges and advantages as me. While writing my mission statement, I thought a lot about Professor Reifenberg’s article about going to South America and learning more about where people come from (“Teaching Accompaniment- A Learning Journey Together, Steve Reifenberg, ” by Steve Reifenberg - Moreau FYE Week 9). His story really stuck with me because I want to have a similar experience. That is why I illustrated the point in my mission statement: “any act of service towards others will always deepen interpersonal relationships, which will expand my overall capacity to love and be loved.” I want to love more and be loved more. I want to have totally new and exciting experiences. Humanity is the world’s greatest gift, and I want to explore and embrace it. How I Will Think But how will I approach these new experiences that I’ve discussed? I need to be in the proper state of mind in order to do so. I’ve outlined a few points on the basis of my mission statement and the course material that I think will help guide me. First, I need to avoid wrongful introspection. Second, I must allow myself to engage with dissonance and dissent. Third, I must reevaluate myself on a regular basis. I think of wrongful introspection as invalid data. Say, as a scientist, I run a test. I test different variables and find that the data is not what I initially expected. It looks rather scattered and in disarray. I don’t think the data is right. I don’t even think the data could be right. But I accept it nonetheless on the basis of scientific reasoning. Now, the data is wrong, but I’ve just https://docs.google.com/document/d/1hZbSdVImfn2hZDqMrdL96dZCNOtHuf6C-lg3sH-Rs30/edit https://docs.google.com/document/d/1hZbSdVImfn2hZDqMrdL96dZCNOtHuf6C-lg3sH-Rs30/edit accepted it as the truth. The same applies to introspection. Week 6’s discussion on introspection talked about how “We eagerly pounce on whatever “insights” we find without questioning their validity or value” (“The right way to be introspective (yes, there’s a wrong way)” by Tasha Eurich - Moreau FYE Week 6). I must make sure that the data that I collect from my own introspection is valid and has weight. I must challenge it and counter challenge it. Only then will I decide what is personal truth and what is personal fiction. One of the main ways in which I plan on challenging my own ideas is by making sure that I do not live within an echo-chamber. I must allow myself to be challenged and I must then either defend or concede my point. Echo chambers exist to halter personal growth. As Professor Blaschko (a friend of mine) said in his talk, “we should be intentional about the information we expose ourselves to. (“How to Avoid an Echo Chamber” by Paul Blaschko - Moreau FYE Week 11). As discussed in the previous section, I plan on going out into the world and engaging with people that are not like me and hold different perspectives. Inevitably, I will encounter dissonance in those arenas. I must allow myself to be open to criticism and challenges. Otherwise, I won’t have the opportunity to grow. A lighthearted example: my hall, Duncan, has a rivalry with Dunne across campus. I used to say I hated Dunne… for no reason at all. Over the last two weeks I’ve gone over there a lot and realized that they are some of the nicest people. My hall, Duncan, was an echo chamber. I would yell “Dunne is Done” and 231 voices would respond. After escaping my echo chamber, I learned the truth, and I need to do more of that in my life. Lastly, I need to reevaluate. My mission statement was a good starting point, but it’s not my ending point. I must continue to have that conversation with myself on a routine basis and ask myself how my mission statement would change. I plan on referring back to the plan in https://ideas.ted.com/the-right-way-to-be-introspective-yes-theres-a-wrong-way/ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GaIVxQcqnLs&t=1s https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GaIVxQcqnLs&t=1s Moreau to accomplish this (“Mission” by Notre Dame - Moreau FYE Week 13). It was a great exercise and is one that I should continue in the future. How I Will Live The last section of topics that I’ve categorized as important is answering the question: “How will I live?”. I’ve organized this section into three subsections: joy, career, and pace. Firstly, I want to live a good life, a joyful life. But what does that look like? During week 3, we followed a model of evaluating a life well-lived. We asked ourselves three questions: what is my source of joy? Is this something that gives me joy? And is it necessary and needed? (“Three Key Questions” by Fr. Michael Himes - Moreau FYE Week 3). Currently, I get joy out of people. I get joy out of building new relationships and strengthening the ones I already have. I want to keep using these questions to reevaluate my mission statement in the future and see where it needs to be adjusted. What’s changed? And what needs to change? Additionally, I get joy out of being inspired. How will I be willing to grow and readjust my mission statement if I am not inspired to do so first? Attending Notre Dame, I have found myself heavily inspired by one individual in particular, Fr. Hesburgh. Prior to coming to Notre Dame, I had seen the Hesburgh film twice. Once when I got in and once when I decided that I was going. Everytime, I learn something new not only about Father Hesburgh, but about myself. I leave the couch I’m on more willing to be a Force for Good. I want to surround myself with those influences throughout my academic career here at Notre Dame, but also out in the professional world as well. I want to be the guy, as the film puts it, who could bring people together as opposed to tearing them apart. When giving tours I make sure to spend two minutes talking about Fr. Hesburgh. I say that above all, he was the guy that could realize that “everyone liked to fish” and that was enough https://www.nd.edu/about/mission/ https://canvas.nd.edu/courses/41088/files/471831/download?download_frd=1 https://canvas.nd.edu/courses/41088/files/471831/download?download_frd=1 (“Hesburgh” by Notre Dame - Moreau FYE Week Two). I’ve discussed wanting to be inspired in my career life, but what will that look like? I came to college for two main reasons. First, to set myself up for success in the career world. Second, to meet new people and build new relationships. But how can I best discern what is the best career choice? I want to use my mission statement as a foundation to choose my career and positively affect the most people, but first I actually have to decide. Reflecting on my future (which sounds a bit paradoxical), I must understand that there is no one major out there, but there is a best major out there for me (“Navigating Your Career Journey” by Meruelo Center for Career Development - Moreau FYE Week Four). Continuing on with week four, I’ve already changed my major twice trying to discern what the best course of action is for me and no one else. I hope to have more conversations with faculty and staff who can guide me in the final decision process when I fully land on my major next year (“Navigating Your Career Journey” by Meruelo Center for Career Development - Moreau FYE Week Four). Additionally, I must lean on my parents, friends, and peers to give me advice on what they perceive to be my greatest needs and personality traits. I had a conversation with my mother in week 5 about discernment (“Discernment Conversation” by Moreau - Moreau FYE Week 5). When I asked her what I most needed to hear that might be hard to hear, she said that I need to slow down and think more. I need to often take stock in my life and be less caught up with the world around me. I think this advice is useful, especially for discernment. I need to practice the proper introspection mentioned earlier while evaluating what is most important in my life. In order to do so, I think I need to slow down. I’ve grown up in the digital age, I am inundated with technology from the second I wake up to the second I go to bed. It’s important, therefore, to slow down and eliminate some of these https://notredame.hosted.panopto.com/Panopto/Pages/Viewer.aspx?id=10159379-7eca-4549-8581-ab9500c9ecd9 https://undergradcareers.nd.edu/navigating-your-career-journey---moreau/ https://undergradcareers.nd.edu/navigating-your-career-journey---moreau/ https://docs.google.com/document/d/1yZ7hqvx-u4EuW2nlK-fRbWFiurQm1mZv_KpoeeiN4So/edit distractions that I have grown accustomed to. During the first week of Moreau, we learned about the internet sabbath and the importance of taking a day off. (“We Need a Secular Sabbath” by Ted Ideas - Moreau FYE Week One). It is impossible for me to do any of the things I’ve mentioned, thinking the right way, embracing others the right way, and living the right way, if I always have a phone-barrier between me and the next person. Therefore, I think it is important to get rid of technology in my life on occasion in order to take stock and realize what is most important, living up to my mission statement. https://ideas.ted.com/why-we-need-a-secular-sabbath/