Nguyen Le 
Kieu Anh Nguyen Le
Andrew Whittington
Moreau First Year Experience 
15 Oct., 2021
Settling into Newness
1. I believe that the community, as well as the individual, is responsible for creating a sense of belonging.
	When we arrived at college, achieving a sense of belonging was on all our minds. We wanted to feel at home in this new environment. During our first week of Moreau, we watched Dr. Brown explain how “the people that have a strong sense of love and belonging believe they are worthy of love and belonging” (“The Power of Vulnerability” by Brené Brown - Moreau FYE Week One). She believes that to achieve belonging, we must first change our perspective and be open-minded. We must be willing to be vulnerable. I only agree with this notion to an extent. I personally did not like how we started our course with this idea because it shifts the responsibility from the community onto the individual. I believe that there are many communities in which certain individuals will never be accepted no matter how much they feel they deserve to belong. I fear that this mindset allows a community to ignore the dicrimintive practices within itself and instead blame the individual for not feeling like they belong. That is why I believe that but the individual and the community should both be vulnerable. Notre Dame needs to be comfortable with having uncomfortable converstations about racism and especially classism within its student body. As a person of color from a low-income family, I will be vulnerable only if I know I am in a safe environment. There are many times during Moreau in which I feel uncomfortable and do not want to give my input on something particularly when we are talking about racial or socioeconomic disparities because I have a feeling other students are not ready to hear what I have to say. Of course, I believe I belong here, but that does not mean I am willing to be vulnerable in every space that calls me to be. 

2. I believe that in order to grow, I must focus on my spiritual, mental, and physical health. 
One of my biggest regrets from high school was my hyper fixation on getting accepted to an “elite” college. I would neglect friendships, sleep, and my real passions just to make myself as attractive of applicant as possible. I believe this relates to the quote: “These two sides of our nature are at war with each other. We live in perpetual self-confrontation between the external success and the internal value” (“Should you live for your resume or your eulogy?” by David Brooks - Moreau FYE Week Two). I focused way too much on external successes. On the surface, it looked like I was doing well ⁠— I had perfect grades and great extracurriculars. In reality, I did not have many fulfilling friendships nor did I feel particularly passionate about many things I was studying. When I got to college, I realized that to be content with myself in the present, I need to focus on developing internal value. I interpret that as growing my faith, forming strong relationships, and following my passions. I would rather be described as kind than diligent or hardworking. Additionally, I realized that sacrificing my physical health for external successes made for a horrible lifestyle. I have been trying to set limits for myself such as only studying for two hours at a time and going back to my dorm by at least midnight every night. I cannot say I have been successful during all eight weeks, but I am doing a lot better than I did in high school. 

3. I believe my purpose is to be a disciple of God. 
During my last years of high school, I was not able to focus on my spiritual life as much as I had in the past. Life got in the way and I felt like there were more immediate matters to take care of; however, I have come to realize that maintaining a good relationship with God is essential to livin a fulfilling life. David Fagerberg explains that “spirituality concerns the real world, and how we see it, how we do it, how we approach it. Spiritual life alters the cockeyed lighting that makes us the center of the universe” (“Faith Brings Light to a Dark World” by David Fagerberg - Moreau FYE Week Three). If my goal is to follow the teachings of the Church, I will be all the qualities that I admire most. Life is not about getting external success ⁠— like we established in Week Two ⁠— but being the person that we want to be. 

4.  I believe that strong friendships not are a vital part of my life. 
One of my biggest worries about starting college was making friends. When the stress and pressure started increasing, I found it to be more difficult to manage because I did not have those established friendships like I did at home. I worried that people were forming friendships without me because I was so caught up in school and did not have time. That proved to not be the case because I had too much of an unrealistic expectation for friends. Friendships take time to form and they “should make you feel positive and like you’re investing in something long-term” (“5 Signs You’re in a Toxic Friendship” by Olivia Taylor ⁠— Moreau FYE Week Four). It does not make sense to just gravitate to random people for the sake of not being alone. I know that I value a few strong friendships more than I do many superficial ones. 

5. I believe that Notre Dame is where I should be right now. 
There was a specific week in which I was constantly questioning whether I made the right choice to come here. I had a very long a conversation with a friend who was feeling the same kind of doubt. We came to the conclusion that although there were a lot of difficulties, many people have overcome the same challenges we did. I thought about the history of this school and how Father Sorin wrote: “This college will be one of the most powerful means of doing good in this country, and, at the same time, will offer every year a most useful resource to the Brothers'· Novitiate; and once the Sisters come-whose presence is so much desired here- they must be prepared, not merely for domestic work, but· also for teaching; and perhaps, too, the establishment of an academy” (“Sorin Letter to Moreau” by Fr. Sorin ⁠— Moreau FYE Week Five). Notre Dame gives me so many amazing opportunities to do good. I want to take advantage of my time here.

6.  I believe that my home and background will shape how I view everything. 
	While writing my poem about my background, I realized how much of it informs how I see the world. I also realized how beautiful my story was. I am proud of everything I went through and everything my family went through to get me to this point. There are so many different stories here at Notre Dame and that is a good thing. I may miss being around similar people but interacting with different stories is how I can gain more perspective. I would not have learned this much about myself or about people if I had stayed in California. 

7.  I believe I pursue truth by questioning the past. 
David Brooks critiques our understanding of history by saying: “Part of the blame goes to conservatives who try to whitewash history. Part goes to progressives who tell such a negative version of history that it destroys patriotism. But the core problem is our failure to understand what education is” (“How to Destroy Truth” by David Brooks ⁠— Moreau FYE Week Seven). I am so thankful for Notre Dame’s dedication to the pursuit of truth. I recognize that not everything they do can be perfect. The university is going to make mistakes, but it has also been making progress. There is no denying that ND’s history as a predominantly white institution informs much of how it interacts with its students today; however, I see progress being made. I am currently participating in a book club where we read Braiding Sweetgrass by Robin Wall Kimmerer, a book about the Potawatomi tribe’s methods of living harmoniously with the land. I have been so excited to read this book. I have resisted putting it in my backpack this whole week because I knew if I did, I would end up reading it instead of studying for midterms. I plan on reading this break because I think it is my responsibility to understand the history of the land I will be living on for the next four years. I am very thankful for Notre Dame organizing the bookclub or else I would have never known about Braiding Sweetgrass.