Moreau First Year Experience 13 Oct 2021 Faith, Family, and Fairness: The Beliefs That Define Me Who we are as people is derived from what we believe. Our beliefs are what define as individuals and are also how we find a sense of community. Over the past 7 weeks, I have tried to analyze not only what I believe, but why I believe it. I have come up with 5 root beliefs that define me as a person. I have engaged with all these beliefs at some point over the last 7 weeks. I believe that there is something powerful about being your authentic self. I believe that establishing meaningful relationships with people we care about is very important. I believe that living to grow in faith and kindness is more important than trying to achieve success in the modern world. I believe that everyone needs to strive for a world where all people are seen as equals. Lastly, I believe that going to Notre Dame is aiding me in my journey to be a more complete person. One of my beliefs is that there is something powerful about being your authentic self. This is not always easy. Personally, there have been times in my life where I was not my authentic self because I was influenced by what other people wanted me to be. I have felt pressured do be involved with things because of what the crowd was doing. However, I feel that I have grown in this aspect of my life. By realizing that I am an individual and what I want for myself is going to be different from what the world wants, I feel like I am being a more authentic person. Authenticity can be achieved through vulnerability with yourself or people who you are close with. This is challenging because being vulnerable can bring up things that make you angry or fearful. Dr. Brené Brown described this struggle as she said, “You can't say, here's the bad stuff. Here's vulnerability, here's grief, here's shame, here's fear, here's disappointment. I don't want to feel these. I'm going to have a couple of beers and a banana nut muffin.” (“The Power of Vulnerability” by Brené Brown – Moreau FYE Week One). Personally, I struggled to be vulnerable with my parents about the difficulty of classes here at Notre Dame. Once I did though, I felt better and realized that I had told them authentically what I felt. This made me feel human and allowed me to be in tune with what I believe. I also believe that establishing meaningful relationships with the people we care about is more important than trying to be successful in the modern world. I want to clarify that I believe that it is important to strive for success and work hard in your life, but it can’t come at the expense of your faith. David Brooks mentions this when he speaks about Adam I vs. Adam II personality in our lives. “Adam I is built by building your strengths. Adam II is built by fighting your weaknesses” (“Should You Live for Your Resume or Your Eulogy?” by David Brooks – Moreau FYE Week Two). Adam II challenges us to be people that care about being kind and having a balanced life rather than doing what the modern culture wants us to do. In my opinion, an Adam II life ties directly with being a faithful person. As Notre Dame student Victor described, “If I were to one day lose all the clothes on my back, and if I was to one day lose all the food and wealth I had to spend, and if I were to lose all the people I had in my life, the one thing that I could never lose and that no one could ever take away from me is my faith.” (“Student Reflections on Faith” by Notre Dame Campus Ministry – Moreau FYE Week Three). This is precisely the reason I believe faith is more important than anything materialistic. Possessions of the world come and go, but our faith and what we believe can last forever. I believe in establishing meaningful relationships with the people we care about. For me, family is something that is at the center of life. I pride myself on having a very tight relationship with my family and believe it is something that greatly defines me. I wanted to emphasize this in my poem when I said, “The place you’re from is made by the people you have spent your life with, all other things are secondary to that fact” (“Where I’m From Poem” by – Moreau FYE Week 6). I believe that my relationship with my family is being put to the test now that I am very far from my home in Miami. However, I believe that because I have a healthy and strong relationship with them, it will not be damaged. Friendships are also essential relationships to have in life. It is important to distinguish what a healthy friendship and a toxic friendship is. A healthy friendship allows for both people to mutually grow while a toxic one involves domination and damage from one person at the expense of the other. “A friend who uses you may treat you like a therapist but never ask about how you’re doing.” (“5 Signs You’re in a Toxic Friendship” by Olivia T. Taylor – Moreau FYE Week Four). This quote from Olivia Taylor represents how I feel about relationships. It is crucial for all relationships to have open communication that is equal and isn’t controlled by one person. I believe that we need to strive for a world where all people are seen as equals. It may be tough to admit, but all people have certain implicit biases that stop this from becoming a reality. Factors like race, ethnicity, and economic status play a role. Every person is a unique individual so when we group them into stereotypical categories about their background, we are damaging our relationships. Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie reflects on this when she states “All I had hear about them was how poor they were, so that it had become impossible for me to see them as anything else but poor. Their poverty was my single story of them.” (“Danger of a Single Story” by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie – Moreau FYE Week 7). I believe that constantly engaging with other people that come from a different background from your own can be very helpful in trying to stop your own implicit biases. An equal world is one where stereotypes about your background don’t define your identity. Lastly, I believe that going to Notre Dame is aiding in my journey to become a more complete person. I think that the Holy Cross mission of the school embodies what I want in my life: an education that equally considers the mind and the heart. Though I feel that the school has been very rigorous regarding the classes, I like that I can go to areas like the Grotto and reflect on my day. The Holy Cross mission allows for me to pursue my education while also living a life of great faith. I believe that this ties back in with the Adam I and Adam II concept that I learned in week 2 of Moreau. A Notre Dame education prepares your Adam I mindset by allowing you to be ready in the modern world with a job while it places an Adam II mindset of being a good and faithful person at its core. Fr. Edward Sorin described Notre Dame accurately when he said, “This college will be one of the most powerful means of doing good in this country” (“Fr. Sorin Letter to Bl. Basil Moreau, December 5, 1842” by Fr. Edward Sorin – Moreau FYE Week 5). The 5 root beliefs I have are what I believe define me as a person. It is not enough to just state these beliefs, however. Anyone could say that they believe in being a person of faith or a loving friend but putting what we believe into action is where we truly experience growth. Embodying our root beliefs in our lives is what allows us to be complete people.