Community and Its Role in my ND Experience
My first semester at Notre Dame has gone by extremely fast - filled with new friends, new ideas, new experiences, lots of laughs, and some disappointments as well. When I think about everything that I have encountered, it seems naive to think that I can reduce my experiences down to a 1000 word essay at the end of the semester. However, this paper is a welcome opportunity to reflect on my semester, and has helped me actually process my time here so far. 
	One reason I picked Notre Dame was because I had heard about how amazing residential life was here. I had heard stories about the community developed in the halls, and the life-long relationships formed there. When I first arrived on campus it was one of the first things that I encountered, and I felt confident I was in the right place. The first week all of the upperclassmen in 4A (my section in O’Neill) came and introduced themselves to us and gave us a little talk about how important the 4A family has been to them and said how excited they were to have us as a part of it. When reading the article, “Advice from a Formerly Lonely College Student,” I thought about my experience with 4A and how helpful that was for me. Emery Bergman said, “Expecting close relationships like the ones that had taken years to develop was unfair to myself and the people around me.” (“Advice from a Formerly Lonely College Student” - by Emery Bergman - Moreau FYE Week Nine) 
Luckily, I had realized this before I got to college and set my expectations pretty low. I thought that it would take me at least a few months, maybe a semester before I actually have a few good friends that I could even consistently get dinner with.. However, my experience with 4A has blown away my expectations. I immediately had a group that I could talk with, do activities with, and eat dinner with. Throughout the semester, I continued to grow closer with them and know I will continue to do so the rest of my time here. Watching the seniors at different events talk about how much the section has meant to them gave me confidence that I was in the right place. Talking with my friends at other colleges I realized how rare this was, and it made me feel incredibly lucky. 
	Community is something that I have always believed is incredibly important. My parents have always stressed the importance of community and it is something that I have come to prioritize in my life. This semester I have encountered new ideas and philosophies, and I remain convinced that community is essential to a meaningful life. In my God and the Good Life class, a few lectures have gone over what gives life meaning. Aristotle believed that living out your function is what gives life meaning, whereas existentialists believe that everyone can choose their own meaning. Personally, I believe that helping others in your community is what is really important. I think that you should aim to help people, but you should focus on the people in your community. I am a part of many communities both here at Notre Dame and back home - my family, my friend group, 4A, and ultimate frisbee club are a few of the main ones. By ingraining yourself in the community, you give meaning to your life, because if you weren’t there the communities you are a part of would not do as well without you. Honestly, I don’t totally agree with Parker Palmer in his article “Thirteen Ways of Looking at Community” (Moreau FYE Week 11). While I agree with his idea that we can't share intimacy with everyone in our different communities, I don’t agree with his statement, “When we treat community as a product that we must manufacture instead of a gift we have been given, it will elude us eternally.” For example, I think that you could turn something like teammates on a club sports team into a real community by inviting your teammates to hang out outside of practices. The community I feel a part of in ultimate frisbee club is not just because I practice and play with my teammates, but because we also do many activities outside of ultimate frisbee together. In this way I think that community can be “manufactured” in a way.
	But these new relationships and that community is not the only thing I have encountered during this semester. I also encountered many new ideas that have helped me think deeper about religion and the role it plays in our world today. Fr. Jenkins’ commencement speech talked about how important faith is in our society. He stressed the importance of treating each other with respect despite differing opinions. He stated, “If we can help solve the problem of hatred, we have a chance to come together and solve all the others.” (“Wesley Theological Seminary 2012 Commencement Address” - Fr. John Jenkins, Moreau FYE Week 10). I think that Fr. Jenkins is very accurate with this statement; and I think that faith is an important tool in being able to do this. A huge message in the bible, and what I think is the most important one is the golden rule: treat your neighbor as yourself. If everyone lived by this rule, there would be much less hatred in this world. 
	I think that hope is also something that contributes to our ability to stop hatred is humanity's capacity to remain hopeful through almost anything. I think that if we did not have this capacity we would resort to hatred much quicker than we already do. I think that the screwtape letters exhibit this principle in a very interesting way - by writing from the perspective of a demon.  (“The Screwtape Letters” by C.S Lewis - Moreau FYE Week 12). Screwtape continually stresses how difficult it is to lead someone away from God because of the way we hang onto hope.
	My semester has been full of many new experiences, new communities, and new ideas. I have encountered many things, and I believe these encounters have transformed me into a better and more mature person. My beliefs are more formulated and my communities are stronger. I have learned how to manage my time, as well as balance my social time with studying. As this semester comes to an end, I realize that I have probably encountered more new things in this period of time than at any other point in my life, and I enjoy reflecting on how much I have grown.