Trzaska 

Prof. Todd Taylor
Moreau FYE Integration 2
3 December 2021
Encountering New Experiences
 Life is full of new experiences, if you blink you just might miss them, and if you don’t think you will miss the meaning of them. Throughout the first semester here at Notre Dame, I have encountered many new experiences and situations that have challenged the way I think, believe, and respond. My life has shifted some in what was important and what I understand as a student in this big big world. These new experiences are going to help to shape who I am as a person going forward and throughout my time at Notre Dame, everything that happened to me will be of great importance.  
	One of the biggest changes when coming to Notre Dame was having to live in close quarters with someone you didn’t know. An outcome of the random roommate pairings for freshmen is that sometimes the people placed together don’t get along. Luckily my roommate and I get along super well and will probably room together in the future, however, a couple of my close friends don’t have the best roommate situation. It has been very beneficial to see how they can work out their differences and also, even how they fail to. This failure to mesh is important to get talked through no matter what walk of life you are from, it won’t necessarily make you agree, but it will ensure you are on the same page. This parallels dissonance that will be encountered in everyday life. There will be things you don’t always agree with and people that get on your nerves but it is important to listen to everyone because you don’t know why they think as they do without listening. The most important tool to combat dissonance in your life is to listen to all. 
	Being broken, feeling that you don’t belong, and just overall feeling not prepared for life are all common feelings encountered throughout life. For me at Notre Dame brokenness came after one of my Calc II exams. Despite putting in effort and studying more for the exam than I think I’ve studied for anything before, the results just didn’t show. This broke me because I was sure I would get a satisfactory grade due to the work I put in, but I couldn’t get it done. The quote from Fr. Jenkins really sheds some light on the positives of this failure, “There is no law of motion in the physical universe that guaranteed that you would end up where you are today.”(“Wesley Theological Seminary 2012 Commencement Address” by Fr. Jenkins - Moreau FYE Week Ten). This quote provides a lot of solace to the reading. It reassures them that you had to accomplish where you got to, it didn’t just happen by chance. It helps signify that you are enough, no matter what failures one may have. (Like failing a big exam) Fr. Jenkins is trying to communicate that despite the hardships that get in a person's way, it is on our own accord and strength that we made it to where we are. The thing about brokenness is that it happens so you can be prepared for the next hardship you face.
	A big aspect of Notre Dame is the community built along the way. Within a person's own community it is important to know a diverse set of people and hear a diverse set of stories and beliefs. At Notre Dame, I was introduced to a larger variety of people than I ever had been before. All these people have unique stories and reasons why they were at Notre Dame. Whether it was them living in California and applying to Notre Dame as a 2nd or even 3rd option, or someone who lives in Indiana and has had countless family members come here, each person has a story to tell. “Everyone has their own story and Each must be heard as part of the larger story”(“With Voices True Snapshot Summary” by Klua Center Archive on Race - Moreau FYE Week 11). This quote tells us that we must listen to all people and their stories in order to get a full understanding. This understanding will help ease the effects of racism and prejudice in the Notre Dame Community. The story of Notre Dame is dependent on each of the outstanding individuals that go here and in order to avoid the conflict of great people we must listen to each other.
	After talking of hardships, brokenness, and prejudices it might be tough to think that hope can wrap into all this, but there is a way. Hope is always able to be present when you look for it. As mentioned above, with the failed exam, it will make me better. Hope stems from improvement and thinking that the next time something happens it’ll be better than the last time it happened. I am a firm believer that the hardships you go through make you stronger for the next hardship you face which correlates directly to hope. If you’re stronger and more prepared then chances are the next hardship you face the easier it’ll be to overcome, which gives me a lot of hope. Here at Notre Dame, hope can draw strong correlations to faith, but it doesn’t necessarily have to. I feel that hope can be made stronger through a strong faith life, but hope is an independent entity and is something that a person could base their whole life on.
	As my time at Notre Dame keeps progressing I’m sure that the lessons will keep getting to be more and more. The lessons learned thus far have had a direct correlation to things going on in my everyday life. Whether it be from getting along with friends, making new friends, or even personal struggles, they get covered and can be applied. I have encountered many new things and the basis of how to respond is laid out through each week of the Moreau class. However, I think the message can be summarized through a few simple ideas. First, be open to communicate, second, be willing to learn, and third, be relentless in your pursuit of a better life for all people.