Salem

Prof. Bushman
Moreau First-Year Experience
1 March 2022
Integration Three
	When looking back on the life of , one could conclude that he lived his life to the fullest. Living a life well-lived is no easy task, one must garner the respect of those around them, have an imprint on his/her community, and express love to all around them. Nicholas checked all these boxes. He would always be willing to assist those in need, by frequently helping out at his local homeless shelter as well as his parish by participating in giving out food and groceries. When walking through town, you would frequently drive, walk, or run past Nicholas and would always be greeted with a larger-than-life smile and a hello. When he wasn’t walking around the streets of his small quaint town, he would be cracking jokes with his friends and making people laugh. Even when things might not be going his way in life, you would never catch Nicholas with his head down. He was a constant ray of sunshine even on the gloomiest of days. His laughter, jokes, and smile could brighten nearly anyone's day. We will look at how Nicholas came to be this emblematic figure of a well-lived life. 
	In his early years, he was what one would call an overthinker which would affect his positive attitude. “It’s easy to feel as if we’re standing two inches away from a huge canvas that’s noisy and crowded and changing with every microsecond. 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, and to take in the larger picture.” Throughout his teen years, he found himself getting caught up in minuscule things that simply don’t affect his life past that very day. Taking a step back and really analyzing what he wanted with his life and what he could do to achieve it is something that changed his perspective and allowed his positivity to shine once again. 
	For him, a career in computer science seemed to be the best opportunity for him. He felt that he could truly find fulfillment in it. “As a commissioned officer in the United States Air Force, Captain Michael Hillmer ’17 has dedicated his life to the defense of his country. But his duty extends far beyond America’s borders. Though his exceptional work ethic has served him well as a cyber operations officer, Hillmer’s service also includes work to preserve local landmarks near his home on Oahu, Hawaii, and to support the families of his fellow military members.” When looking at the career and life of Captain Michael Hillmer he had found to understand that a fulfilling career path is simply not linear. There are many branches that develop from your careers which make it even more worthwhile. In the Captain’s case, he was able to live near his home and support families and his communities whilst concurrently serving and defending the country. In Nicholas’ case, he would come to find that he could help many with his coding expertise. 
	A perspective that opened Nicholas’ mind was that of Sister Alethia, who believed that to live a fulfilling life one must reflect and accept death nearing closer. “Sister Aletheia rejects any suggestion that the practice is morbid. Suffering and death are facts of life; focusing only on the “bright and shiny” is superficial and inauthentic. ‘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.’” The last line of this quote is truly powerful. We should not distract ourselves with falsehoods. In these falsehoods, we lose the authenticity that life brings and the most profound human ability of adaptation. Sister Aletheia has decided to live her life with the perspective that she will die someday whereas many believe that life simply keeps continuing. This sort of attitude never really affected him as a kid. But as he grow older he sensed a shift of worrying about the future more. So he began to accept this which allowed him to live in the present.
	Finding his passion was extremely difficult. He went through highschool taking courses that really didn’t interest him. But when he came to college he knew exactly what he wanted to do, the possibilities were endless. “There is no “best major” out there - but there is a “best major for you."  We also view studying what you love as highly practical.  If you are in a major you enjoy, you will be more motivated to go to class, get better grades, and overall be happier - all of that leads to better post-graduate outcomes.  That sounds pretty good, right? I’m sure you’ve all done things that you really haven’t enjoyed - maybe it was something a friend for family member wanted you to do or a required course in high school.” He found this to be extremely true. The computer science major was located in the engineering school, so it is required that he took the generic engineering courses such as chemistry and physics. Going through these courses his freshman year really has to demotivate however, he later was able to take two computer science classes that have reenergized my passion and allowed him to be overall happier.
	He would have meaningful conversations with his peers during this time to learn more about himself. For instance, he stated “when discussing the issues that were important to me I realized that this side of me had not really been highlighted here. Usually, when hanging around these friends we stay on a more positive level and rarely talk about politics etc. I had the feeling that they would simply know my views and stances on specific issues but that was farthest from the truth.” Communicating and letting others know who you really are is detrimental to achieving this life well lived and Nicholas understood this at an early age. 
	Continuing on this thought of self-knowledge and reflection in college he continued to learn more about himself by reading and watching videos. One article in particular states, “So if asking why isn’t so helpful, what should we ask? A study by psychologists J. Gregory Hixon and William Swann arrived at a simple answer… The lesson here: Asking what could keep us open to discovering new information about ourselves, even if that information is negative or in conflict with our existing beliefs. Asking why might have the opposite effect.” At the time what he took from this article was this, “Reading this article and watching the video made me realize the importance of self-reflection. To be completely honest I did not think it was rather important in the grand scheme of things. I always seemed to brush things off and move onwards with little reflection. I have been trying to live more at the moment than ponder on things that have already happened which compared to how I used to think in the past has been extremely effective.” This self-reflection was immensely responsible for taking him to where he ended up.
	Lastly, relationships were his greatest asset. “Solidarity is a term that many wish to erase from the dictionary. Solidarity, however, is not an automatic mechanism. It cannot be programmed or controlled. It is a free response born from the heart of each and every one. Yes, a free response! When one realizes that life, even in the middle of so many contradictions, is a gift, that love is the source and the meaning of life, how can they withhold their urge to do good to another fellow being?” Rather than looking at life around him as something that was simply inherited, he looked at it as a gift. This actualization prompted him to appreciate all life around him and even be there for it. This combined with all other stories and traits about Nicholas truly cement him as one who lived a life well-lived. 



Work Cited:
Iyer, Pico. “Why We Need to Slow down Our Lives.” Ideas.ted.com, 4 Nov. 2014, https://ideas.ted.com/why-we-need-a-secular-sabbath/. 
“2021.” Domer Dozen, 9 Sept. 2021, https://domerdozen.nd.edu/. 
Marketing Communications: Web | University of Notre Dame. “Navigating Your Career Journey - Moreau First Year Experience Course.” Undergraduate Career Services, https://undergradcareers.nd.edu/navigating-your-career-journey---moreau/. 
PhD, Tasha Eurich. “The Right Way to Be Introspective (Yes, There's a Wrong Way).” Ideas.ted.com, 2 June 2017, https://ideas.ted.com/the-right-way-to-be-introspective-yes-theres-a-wrong-way/. 
Francis, His Holiness Pope. “Why the Only Future Worth Building Includes Everyone.” His Holiness Pope Francis: Why the Only Future Worth Building Includes Everyone | TED Talk, https://www.ted.com/talks/his_holiness_pope_francis_why_the_only_future_worth_building_includes_everyone/transcript.