4/25/2022

					A Unique Endeavor
	It has been a long time since I have been on this world, and through that time my goals have changed immensely.  I went from wanting to working in computer software, making video games, to wanting to be a neurologist. A lot of things can change at any moment, but this is something I am sure that will not change in the future. I know exactly I want to do, and that is be a doctor. However, if I had to pick an exact goal, my mission statement would be “I want to become a Neurologist, so that I can help people who have some of the most difficult diseases to deal with, neurodegenerative diseases”.  This is my mission statement, and I think this perfectly encapsulates exactly what I am trying to do.
	I already think that the path that I have already walked is in accordance with my mission statement, as I reflect on my time here as it comes to an end, a regular occurrence for me as I everyone needs a break to reflect, “ It’s only by stepping farther back and standing still that we can begin to see what that canvas (which is our life) really means ” (“Why we need to slow down our lives” Pico Iyer - Moreau FYE Week One) . I have already taken classes that directly lead to me becoming a doctor, and my entire major revolves around learning Neuroscience so that I can one day apply what I learn to becoming a doctor. However, this first year will not be as important as the next three years I have here. The first year was to get acclimated to the new environment that I will be in for the next four years. The experiences I made during that year will be invaluable, as “Every experience shapes you in some way, whether you realize it at the time or no” (“Navigating Your Career Journey ” by Moreau - Moreau FYE Week Four ). However, now that I know how to traverse life here, I think that, especially for my major, I am ready to begin doing the things that I really want to do here. 
I think that the most important thing that I must do is join a laboratory, which will probably shape my experience tremendously, as its one of the biggest commitments colleges of science student can have. A place where I will be able to learn new techniques and meet new people, creating new experiences. I am a bit scared though, as I have never experienced anything like this before. I have done research before, but never in an actual laboratory. At times, I forget the fact that some of the things I need to learn to complete my mission statement and achieve my version of the life well lived, I already do know, even if I feel as though that is not the case, sometimes “the things we are most comfortable at and the things we are most natural at are often our vocations” (“Three Key Questions” by Father Himes - Moreau FYE Week Three). This sometimes leads to me wanting to give up, however I feel like the difficulty of the task I have donned on myself is the reason why I see it as my mission statement in the first place. I want to leave an impact here, as small as that impact may be. That is not an easy task, regardless of the route I take to obtain it. 
I feel as though the biggest reason that my mission statement will lead my life for most of my foreseeable future is because it is the way that I want my “life well lived” to leave an impact on this world. I remember talking about this with my cousin about this as well during the discernment conversation, we talked about the fact that a life well lived is not necessarily one that is successful in essence. (“Discerning a Life Well-Lived Discernment Conversation” by Moreau - Moreau FYE Week 5) is more about leaving an impact on the people who are around you. I took this and I feel like the best way I can try to achieve this at this point is to volunteer in activities that directly tie into medical processes. This can be in awareness, joining clubs that allow me to exercise the small amount of experience I have, to create a small change even in the ND community. These small aspects are important, as” the future is made of you, it is made of encounters” (“ Why the only future worth building includes everyone ” by The Pope - Moreau FYE Week Seven). The small events are what lead to the life changing events, they create small changes in you as a person, shaping you slowly but surely. 
As my time continues at Notre Dame, I do not know if I will be able to take a time to stop. Becoming a doctor is my primary objective for being here, and since that is the case, my experience here is going to railroaded for the path that I am taking. I feel like for one, since it is very hard to get into medical school, I tend to “Fixate on problems instead of moving forward” (“The right way to be introspective yes, there’s a wrong way ” by Tasha Eurich - Moreau FYE Week Six). This is one of the things that I have already been trying to change since I have gotten here and has been a big part of my development so far as I have been here. I have stumbled a bit while being here as well. Some classes in which I never really got the hang of, not being in as much stuff as I wanted to be in, there is a lot of stuff I wish I did here that I didn’t, but “to have a complete and honest human story if one does not speak of human failings as well as human successes” (“Hesburgh” by Jerry Barca and Christine O Malley - Moreau FYE Week Two). 
I have only been here a year, but even though I have stumbled, I also had many triumphant moments here. I have made a lot of friends here, as that is important since,” Solidarity is about our relationship with the other, and through the practice of accompaniment we make it real and move it forward” (“Teaching Accompaniment: A Learning Journey Together” by Steve Reifenberg - Moreau FYE Week Nine). It is impossible to be some place alone, as you need those with similar goals to you to stay on track. I have also been successful at getting acclimated here, which has always been a tough thing for me. I came to the campus a week later than everyone else, which made it feel harder to get assimilated to life here as I was immediately thrusted into classes with no introduction. I hope that will not be the case in any future endeavors, but “It would be one thing if I could have been assured then, or even now, that such a thing could never happen again. My own experience proves that it can” (“'I am George Floyd. Except, I can breathe. And I can do something.'” by 	Dean Cole- Moreau FYE Week Twelve). However, a big part of me being here is to ger better at the things I am uncomfortable with, and I feel like my mission statement needs me to be better at the things I am not good at.
My next three years here will be in an environment which seeks to “create an environment of mutual respect, hospitality and warmth in which none are strangers, and all may flourish.” (“The Spirit of Inclusion at Notre Dame” by Du Lac  - Moreau FYE Week Ten). This ideal is one in which sometimes I forgot to push through in the past. However, in my time here, I hope to make sure that the mission I want to accomplish makes sure to extend the current environment I am in and give it to others around the world. Those people I give it too, I hope will extend that to others around them as well, enough to get “a thousand people to do what you want to do ” (“Passion Isn’t Enough” by Hidden Brain Media - Moreau FYE Week Eleven). I hope that my time here will teach me the tools to spread that sort of harmony, one built on cooperation with others, helping each other to complete goals.
I never really thought of the reason why I decided to come here. I did not realize that something like a “mission statement” could shape your entire college experience. I did not have a mission I wanted to lead my path for the foreseeable future. But, through this class I was able to create one (“ Personal Mission Statement ” by   - Moreau FYE Week Thirteen ), and that was probably the most important aspect of Moreau for me. I hope that I can stay on the path which will allow me to complete what I set out to do, which I feel like will not be hard to do. Being here already shows me that I am already on the course to completing my goals.