Moreau FYE Capstone Integration FYE 29 April 2022 Moreau FYE Semester Two Capstone Integration How do I pursue a life well-lived? As a born and raised Catholic, I value living a just and moral life. It is important to me to orient my goals towards bringing about good for others. For it is not only a goal of mine to spend eternity with Our Father in Heaven, but I want to arrive at the Gates of Heaven knowing that I brought many others with me. Essentially, that in itself is my mission. I also value putting both my faith in Jesus and my relationships with others before myself. Making an intentional effort to foster authentic and genuine relationships is something I deeply care about. I believe that God puts certain people into my life for a reason and it is my job to listen and engage with them so I may enrich myself with their wisdom. To me, living a life well-lived means focusing on bettering myself each and every day, so that I am personally in a spot where I am capable of changing someone’s world (Personal Mission Statement - Moreau FYE Week Thirteen). This year I learned how difficult it can be to focus on bettering myself if I don’t set aside time for self-reflection. Focusing on myself, and ensuring that I am in a place where I can best help others, is a huge component of my mission statement. This past semester, after reading the article by Pico Iyer during the first week of Moreau, I started utilizing the “Do Not Disturb” feature on my phone. The article discussed research in the field of “interruption science” and mentioned that it can take 25 minutes to recover from just a single phone call (“Why We Need to Slow Down Our Lives” by Pico Iyer - Moreau FYE Week One). I became aware of how often I was picking up my phone as notifications lit up my screen during the day and realized that the time I was aimlessly spending on my phone after getting distracted by a notification was eating away at the time I could have been spending on self-reflection and care. The “Do Not Disturb” feature has allowed me to get things done more efficiently, without distractions, and I’ve found that I have more time to focus on myself. During the second week of Moreau, I learned about the mission of Fr. Ted Hesburgh. I was inspired by Hesburgh’s ingenious ways of bringing people with opposing views together in the same room. He understood how to engage the larger culture and how to transform and articulate the culture's strengths and weaknesses. Fr. Ted was entirely committed to the country, his faith, and to what was right (“Hesburgh” produced by Jerry Barca and Christine O’Malley - Moreau FYE Week Two). It is important to me to represent Catholicism well– something that Hesburgh surely accomplished. His class and ability to talk across differences in an effort to create trust and a mutual understanding is a skill that I want to foster throughout my remaining time at Notre Dame and thereafter. To live in such a way demonstrates that one truly understands the bigger picture of life. I went into freshman year undecided about my major. During the third week of Moreau, we reflected upon what questions guide a life well-lived. “Does anybody need me to do it?” was one of three key questions posed by Fr. Michael Himes (“Three Key Questions” by Fr. Michael Himes - Moreau FYE Week Three). Fundamentals of Finance, with Carl Ackermann, was a course I took this semester that greatly influenced my decision to declare finance as my major. I love giving to others because of the rewarding feeling it brings me. There are a lot of really successful individuals in the finance industry who don’t value giving back all that greatly. I’ve realized that there are people out in the world that need me to work hard so that I can help them financially. God made each of us with a unique purpose, and I believe He intended for me to have a positive experience with Ackermann, so that I would be inspired to go do great things in the finance world. During the fourth week, I was reminded that, contrary to popular belief, deciding on a major does not determine the rest of my life (“Navigating Your Career Journey” from the Meruelo Family Center for Career Development - Moreau FYE Week Four). I am passionate about many things and have been made aware that, despite my major, I can accomplish whatever I set myself up for. I interviewed my dad during the fifth week of Moreau for the Discernment Activity. I chose to interview my dad because he is someone whose advice I value greatly. He has a special ability to deliver advice to me in an honest, yet loving manner. When asked what I most value and desire in life, he responded, “Respect, because you have grown up in a fairly competitive household, with an overachieving older brother that unfairly placed an inordinate amount of pressure on you to achieve similar success. Those challenges led you to value both the respect of others and respect for yourself (Discernment Conversation Activity - Moreau FYE Week Five).” This was right on, as respect from others is a value rooted deeply in the way I choose to live. “So I encourage all of us to just focus on what we can do for others, or what we can do already, instead of what we cannot do and what we do not have yet (“5 Minutes” by Aria Swarr - Moreau FYE Week Six).” This quote was from the sixth week of Moreau when we discussed personal obstacles to living a life well-lived and how to respond. Last semester in Moreau, I took a test that evaluated my strengths and my responses indicated gratitude as my top ranked strength. I think it is so important to live life with a “glass half full” perspective. It is so much easier to recognize our blessings this way. It is not possible to live a life well-lived if our focus is only on what we are living without. During the seventh week of Moreau, we discussed relationships of a life well-lived. In “Why the Only Future Worth Building Includes Everyone,” Pope Francis talked about hope. He pointed out that hope begins with just one person. Pope Francis also touched on tenderness and how it starts from the heart and reaches the eyes (“Why the Only Future Worth Building Includes Everyone” from His Holiness Pope Francis - Moreau FYE Week Seven). In my mission statement, I expressed how I value fostering genuine and authentic relationships. I think tenderness is really important when forming these types of bonds. The eighth week of Moreau involved an activity in which I wrote my own eulogy. Through this assignment, I defined a life well-lived. To live a life well-lived is to live assiduously– to intend on showing great care and perseverance in every one of my actions (Integration Three - Moreau FYE Week Eight). Engaging with accompaniment in a suffering world, which we touched on during week nine, also relates to my mission. “They did not see their caring for me as a grand gesture of generosity; they simply did, in the moment, what needed to be done (“Teaching Accompaniment: A Learning Journey Together” by Professor Steve Reifenberg - Moreau FYE Week Nine). True acts of generosity are done without expecting anything in return. Others will be able to see my mission in action when they can tell that I am acting with generosity. “We prize the uniqueness of all persons as God’s creatures (“The Spirit of Inclusion at Notre Dame” from du lac: A Guide to Student Life - Moreau FYE Week Ten).” The world would be so boring if everyone was the same. The diversity at Notre Dame is what collectively makes the university so talented. There is a wide range of talents across the various majors and when students across the board come together and collaborate, the different perspectives and knowledge backgrounds allow for creative ideas to emerge. As stated in my mission statement, I value authentic encounters with my peers here at Notre Dame and truly believe God put us at the same place so we can work together to accomplish something magical. At Notre Dame, I am surrounded by opportunities to grow in wisdom. In order to grow in wisdom, I think it is extremely important to listen with open ears. Each of us lives a life that is unique only to us. We experience things that others do not. In order to grow in wisdom and understanding, it is important that we share these experiences with others. I think it is important to note that even if we disagree with someone, it does not mean we can’t learn something from them (“How to Avoid an Echo Chamber” by Dr. Paul Blaschko - Moreau FYE Week Eleven). One specific mission I want to contribute to while here at Notre Dame is being a voice for the unborn. I want to speak out for the unborn as loud as Dean G. Marcus Cole has spoken out against racial injustice (“Dean G. Marcus Cole: ‘I am George Floyd. Except, I can breathe. And I can do something.” - Moreau FYE Week Twelve). I hold a special place in my heart for the victims of abortion and have the power to do something. If I can save just one child’s life, then I have fulfilled my earthly mission to change just one person’s world. Over the course of my remaining three years as a student at Notre Dame, I hope to continue to encounter people who help me strengthen and live out my mission. I am so blessed to be at a university that is so rich in opportunity.