Mullery 

Theo Helm
Moreau First Year Experience
29 April 2022
Looking for Something More
	Throughout all my life, I have longed for something greater than what most people find fulfilling. I have always had a “good” life by most standards, with a stable family, good friends, and a strong sense of personal accomplishment, but at the same time I have, for as long as I can remember, wished for something else. Even at Notre Dame, my dream school for my entire life, I had all the pieces of what I thought made me happy, yet I often felt like I was still just playing an act. As I have navigated through the last two semesters, I have at least partially found the answer to my burning desire—what my true mission is. Especially through my Theology class this semester, I have come to realize that God has called me to serve others through His love (“Week 13 QQC” by  - Moreau FYE Week 13). Only through doing this can I reach full fulfillment and have the life I have always wanted.
	One of my biggest sources of learning about my own mission has come from the example of Notre Dame, especially Father Hesburgh: “They would talk about how he would be gone so much and he would travel around, but the reason he did that was to set the example for the faculty and for the students that the institution needed to be engaged in the world” (Hesburgh by Patrick Creadon - Moreau FYE Week Two). I also draw a lot of inspiration from the Catholic Church, which at its core is meant to represent Jesus’ teachings: “One of the essential tests of social justice within any Christian community is its abiding spirit of inclusion. Scriptural accounts of Jesus provide a constant witness of this inclusiveness. Jesus sought out and welcomed all people into the Kingdom of God — the gentile as well as the Jew, women as well as men, the poor as well as the wealthy, the slave as well as the free, the infirm as well as the healthy” (“The Spirit of Inclusion at Notre Dame” from the Notre Dame mission - Moreau FYE Week 10). Lastly, my mission was partially developed with the idea of accompaniment in mind, as I strive to be there for others while also acknowledging that I don’t have all the answers: “‘Some people are happy only if they are helping,’ he added. ‘This is a question of friendship - you must learn to be beside, walking with another person.’ It is a reciprocal relationship. One cannot accompany without being accompanied, in the same way someone cannot be a good friend without being open to friendship. This requires a great deal of humility. Not only is it important to walk together with somebody, but one must also learn how to be accompanied – to participate in the reciprocity of accompaniment” (“Teaching Accompaniment: A Learning Journey Together” by Professor Steve Reifenberg - Moreau FYE Week 9).
	Over the next few years and really all of my life, I plan to put this mission into practice in a number of ways. I am deeply committed to my studies in addition to trying to serve others, so diving fully into the career development process in order to find my true vocation is very important to me: “[Dr. Donald Super] contended that career satisfaction/success depends in part on how well a person can identify and implement his/her career self-concept, which is comprised of your values, interests, personality, and skills” (“Navigating Your Career Journey” by the Meruelo Family Center for Career Development - Moreau FYE Week Four). I also want to remember the little things, knowing that I do not need much to be happy: “After Admiral Richard E. Byrd spent nearly five months alone in a shack in the Antarctic, in temperatures that sank to 70 degrees below zero, he emerged convinced that ‘Half the confusion in the world comes from not knowing how little we need’” (“Why we need to slow down our lives” by Pico Iyer - Moreau FYE Week One). My one wish is to be someone who will always be there to support others, no matter what they are going through. I love to have late night conversations with people and talk about what’s really important in life, knowing that these conversations are beneficial both for the people I have them with and for myself: “Often, others can help us see things we cannot see ourselves” (“Discernment Conversation Activity” by Moreau FYE - Moreau FYE Week Five). 
	I want to be the type of person who does not worry about the meaningless things in life. One of those things is often politics—maybe not the issues themselves but the way people think about them: “It looks much more like what they're doing is similar to a sports fanatic engaged in sports or a foodie watching food shows, reading restaurant reviews. It seems much more in that category of life than in the category of power acquisition” (“Passion Isn’t Enough” by Hidden Brain Media - Moreau FYE Week 11). Instead, I want to focus on thinking seriously about important issues, knowing that I have the power to make change in this world. At times, I have struggled with getting in my own head too much, but I learned over a long time the dangers of this and avoided them: “In truth, introspection can cloud our self-perceptions and unleash a host of unintended consequences. Sometimes it may surface unproductive and upsetting emotions that can swamp us and impede positive action” (“The Right Way to be Introspective (Yes, There’s a Wrong Way)” by Tasha Eurich - Moreau FYE Week Six). I care deeply, and even though that has hurt me in the past, I will still do my best to make this world a better place; I am very passionate about trying to bring people together by putting aside their differences: “The challenge is getting them to abandon the territory of their gang and replace it with a turf more ample, inclusive, and as expansive as God’s own view of things” (“Chapter 8: Jurisdiction” from Tattoos on the Heart by Fr. Greg Boyle, S.J. - Moreau FYE Week Seven). Lastly, I do not want to bog myself down with thinking about death and the fear that comes with it. Rather, I want to use my eventual death (whenever it is) to motivate me to live my life to the fullest and make every second count: “‘We try to suppress the thought of death, or escape it, or run away from it because we think that’s where we’ll find happiness,’ she said. ‘But it’s actually in facing the darkest realities of life that we find light in them’” (“Meet the nun who wants you to remember that you will die” by Ruth Graham - Moreau FYE Week Three). 
	To now reemphasize what I aim to do, my mission is, in the most simple terms, to serve others. I will try my best to place others before myself, even when difficult or inconvenient. The main way I have chosen to serve others so far is through being a friend to everyone in my dorm. One of my best approaches to doing this has been working at my dorm restaurant, Yaz’s. Whenever we’re open at Yaz’s, we get a huge portion of the dorm down there eating great food, talking with everyone else, and having a great time. As one of the employees, I get to serve everyone in the Manor and make sure everything’s running smoothly. Building on this, I also ran for VP of the dorm and won so I could do anything in my power to make this place better for everyone. While it’s great to have these formal positions to help, I also pride myself on going outside of that to be there for other people. Whenever I’m around, people can count on me to be a true friend to all I encounter. 
	I am a man who above all trusts in God and believes in the power of prayer (“Week 12 QQC” by  - Moreau FYE Week 12). With this love for God comes the immense love that God has for all of us; I sincerely hope that I will be able to do my part in extending that love across the world to as many people as I can.