FYE 10101: Integration 2 Mr. Whittington Moreau FYE 10101: Integration 1 December 3, 2021 This Stepping Stone Throughout my time here at the University of Notre Dame, I believe I am truly becoming who God has made me to be as a man for others. Since arriving on campus, I have had to call the shots for myself - as all of my classmates have as well. Although I only speak for myself, I feel as if many of my peers have been able to inch closer towards the answers to questions that have lingered throughout our lives. One great aide to my personal development has been the Moreau First Year Experience class. Week after week, it has pushed me to think about my life, what I have and have not done, and who has surrounded me as I walk the path of life. As a result, I feel like my process of personal development has had an upward trajectory - however slight or steep - that has been guided by what I have encountered at Notre Dame. One of my favorite moments during my time at Notre Dame was when I attended the Asian Allure festival performance on a cold Friday night. As my choice of majoring in engineering had given me a firm elbow to the ribs during this particular week, I had been planning on watching my friend, Fang-Rui, perform at the festival. Though engineering was proving to be a hard horse on which to stay saddled, the concert brought me back to the Chicago Symphony Orchestra performances I attended during highschool and brought about a revitalization within me. Although engineering was difficult, the uplifting nature of the Asian Allure show reminded me of a lesson I had learned in Moreau: “Look at all of the options for living life and pick the ones that [I] feel called to” (“Why Letting Go of Expectations is a Freeing https://grottonetwork.com/navigate-life/health-and-wellness/letting-go-of-expectations/?utm_source=fall_2021&utm_medium=class&utm_id=moreau Habit” by Julia Hogan - Moreau FYE Week 9). I understood I was not choosing between engineering and Asian Allure, but rather, I was choosing between working hard and taking the path of least resistance. Knowing I was working hard and upholding my end of the bargain put my fatigued mind at peace - it quelled my internal dissonance. My friend’s performance was beautiful, but my happiness with engineering was something that was previously ambiguous due to what college really held in store. Now, I am happy to have greater internal clarity knowing that my hard work is worth it. During my time at Notre Dame, there has been no shortage of indicating where help can be directed towards so that people can alleviate certain problems, particularly in the socio-economic sphere. Though there are many problems in the world, it seems as if Notre Dame is starting a new group every day in order to tackle the various obstacles presented to any community. From groups that try to feed the hungry to organizations that make strides at combating hate, there are many central challenges like poverty and certain social constructs within the community that hinder the lives of those affected. As someone who has been able to recognize a few of these challenges, it has helped me realize that when we allow ourselves to be unblinded, we can do so much more good than we were once able. This stemmed from my understanding of a reading from Moreau that stated, “Hearts are breakable, and it’s a very good thing, that it’s worth celebrating because it allows you to grow and expand” (“Women Find Healing Through Kintsugi Workshop” by Kirsten Hegelson - Moreau FYE Week 10). When I applied this to my life in the middle of the semester, I realized that my heart was all over the place. As I have tried piecing it back together, I have realized the unfortunate plethora of people in my life that are both so deserving and so desperately in need of a break. Whether it be financially or emotionally, there exist people within our communities that are most worthy of https://grottonetwork.com/navigate-life/health-and-wellness/letting-go-of-expectations/?utm_source=fall_2021&utm_medium=class&utm_id=moreau https://grottonetwork.com/make-an-impact/heal/find-healing-through-kintsugi-art/ https://grottonetwork.com/make-an-impact/heal/find-healing-through-kintsugi-art/ catching a break that simply never will. I have taken it upon myself to try and be the agent that spreads the goodness of God wherever I am able. Until I am able to donate billions like Elon Musk, I feel I am morally obligated to devote myself to being that “break” for which someone has been waiting. As for my experience, I met a custodian inside one of the Notre Dame dorms. Throughout the year I got to know that custodian very well and listened to what they had to say regarding their life. After a semester of listening to such a beautiful person tell me how unfortunate their life has been in certain times, I eagerly await the day I can do my part to make this world a better place. Additionally, with the start of college brought the start of living with other people with which I was unfamiliar. For me, this does not bring the prospect of conflict, simply because I try to avoid conflict. Not out of fear or anxiety, just because I would rather have no conflict with anyone than be stubborn and selfish by revealing my true feelings. Although I have nice friends in my quad, they all seem to have an opinion about my roommate. More towards the beginning of the year, most comments were negative and I almost allowed myself to step into the same pitfall. However, at a certain point in the year, I tried to look at the roommate situation in the best light I could. As I look back on that period, I realized a point of emphasis from one of the Moreau articles, “My concept of community must be capacious enough to embrace everything.” (“Thirteen Ways of Looking at Community” by Parker J. Palmer - Moreau FYE Week 11). Despite my roommate being this or that, I am absolutely sure that anyone could have certain complaints about anyone - I am positive people could have their complaints about me! But the deeper I looked into the situation, the sooner I realized that everyone has their own idiosyncrasies. Since, I have chosen to overlook the dissimilarities between my roommate and me, and, instead, strengthen our bond of interconnection by seeing the good in him. I can assure http://couragerenewal.org/parker/writings/13-ways-of-looking-at-community/ you, he is a bright individual who constantly works as hard as he can, whenever he can. Overall, this situation has helped me grow tremendously. So often do we work alongside people that have minor tendencies that overshadow their good naturedness from our perspective. It is just as Matthew 7:5 says, “You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your brother’s eye.” Due to my roommate situation, I have learned to not let those minor tendencies overshadow one’s goodness. Finally, I am glad that I can honestly say that these first few months at Notre Dame have been by far the most transformative of my life. Prior, I probably would have said the summers I caddied on the golf course made me who I am. Now, I know that Notre Dame is forming me into the man I am to become. As Blessed Basil Moreau would have agreed, “[Students] should be trained in such a way that they may be everywhere what they were in school.” (“Holy Cross and Christian Education” by Campus Ministry at the University of Notre Dame - Moreau FYE Week 12). From the days spent laughing with new friends to others spent “practicing my social skills” with kids who did not want to talk; from walking by the Golden Dome with Mother Mary standing atop, to asking for her intercession on my knees at the grotto; from the day when I was deferred, to the day I was accepted, it warms my heart to even think: I go to Notre Dame! Though I cannot summarize my time in a single experience, the total experience of walking the sidewalks at Our Lady’s University has set my heart ablaze to “go and do likewise” as the Good Samaritan did (Luke 10:37). https://canvas.nd.edu/courses/28308/files/189414/download?download_frd=1 https://canvas.nd.edu/courses/28308/files/189414/download?download_frd=1