Integration One Three Beliefs, and Why They’re There The first of my root beliefs explains how I relate to other people. This root belief is: “I believe that I forge life-giving relationships by being authentic.” Authenticity is one of the primary things that makes me act the way I do: I say what I think, express how I feel, keep relatively few secrets, and have trouble staying quiet when I think something isn’t right. It is for this reason I really admire some of the student reflections from Week Three. “My faith is really guided by… social justice, so I’ve been drawn to the ideas of liberation theology” (“Student Reflections on Faith at Notre Dame” by Kyle, Class of 2023 - Moreau FYE Week Two). I’m probably not as much of an activist as Kyle, but I admire his dedication to doing what he knows is right. Regardless, while authenticity isn’t exactly something that I’ve had to aspire to (it comes to me naturally) it is something that has been challenged: if people don’t like you, it hurts more when the person they don’t like really is you rather than a facade. Similarly, it’s very embarrassing to loudly profess your opinion in a scenario, only for your opinions to grow or change, and for you to realize you were expressly in the wrong later on. But as Brené Brown said, risking vulnerability is the only way to truly be authentic. When she talked about the happiest people she interviewed, she said, “they were willing to let go of who they thought they should be in order to be who they were, which you absolutely have to do that for connection. They fully embraced vulnerability,” (“The Power of Vulnerability” by Brené Brown - Moreau FYE Week One). Over time, I decided that it was worth it to be authentic, and the Week One Moreau’s video with Brené Brown really was able to voice some of the reasons I decided to make that choice. After all, as pointed out in the quote by Brené Brown, vulnerability is not only required for authenticity, it is also required for connection. https://drive.google.com/file/d/1YVemqUBaAs5DNBPYm806TyQZr3F0xElP/view https://drive.google.com/file/d/1YVemqUBaAs5DNBPYm806TyQZr3F0xElP/view https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X4Qm9cGRub0&feature=youtu.be This leads to my second root belief: “I believe that I am made to find connection.” I think this is true of all human beings… everyone needs other people, and these relationships especially need to be healthy. In her article Olivia Taylor gives an example of conversation in a healthy friendship: “Great, fruitful conversation comes from two people engaging in one another’s thoughts, feelings, and experiences” which I think everyone can agree with (“5 Signs You’re in a Toxic Friendship” by Olivia Taylor - Moreau FYE Week Four). I also believe that the Week Six assignment (the Where I’m From poem) also implicitly recognizes the need for authenticity in relationships. While George Ella Lyon on her website emphasizes the need for both diversity and authenticity to the self in one’s own writing, the concept behind writing and then sharing a Where I’m From poem in the curriculum seems to have roots in the idea of sharing one’s authentic self with one’s classmates (“Where I’m From” by George Ella Lyon, Moreau FYE Week Six). The idea that I need connection has never been challenged at Notre Dame, rather, I’ve found that idea has become more true. While I love spending alone time, coming to college has demonstrated to me the fact that I need social connection. Unlike back home (where I was almost never lonely) I needed to actively seek out other people at Notre Dame, because moving away from home makes you lonely. The experience of moving to college cemented this root belief. Coming to this conclusion at Notre Dame helped me form new habits when it comes to finding companionship and making new friends. This is also why I believe David Brooks when he writes, “[O]ne of the great projects of schooling and culture is to educate the passions”... because sometimes, it really is how someone feels that counts (“How to Destroy Truth” by David Brooks, Moreau FYE Week Seven). These kinds of experiences have forced me to think about what it really is that I enjoy, because I’ve had to uproot from a lot of things that are familiar. https://grottonetwork.com/navigate-life/relationships/signs-of-toxic-friendships/ https://grottonetwork.com/navigate-life/relationships/signs-of-toxic-friendships/ http://www.georgeellalyon.com/where.html https://www.nytimes.com/2021/07/01/opinion/patriotism-misinformation.html?referringSource=articleShare My third root belief also has to do with how I relate to others. It is: “ I believe that my purpose is to both a) live a good life for myself and b) improve the lives of others.” This belief really centers around one axiom: take care of yourself, and take care of others. David Brooks touches on this in his TED Talk, discussing the conflicting natures of what he calls Adam I and Adam II: “Soloveitchik said there are two sides of our nature… Adam I is the worldly, ambitious, external side of our nature… Adam II is the humble side of our nature. Adam II wants not only to do good but to be good,” (“Should you live for your resume or your eulogy?” by David Brooks, Moreau FYE Week Two). In this, he contrasts what he calls resume virtues (ambition, achievement, worldly wealth, etc.) and eulogy virtues (kindness, generosity, helping others). David Brooks’ video was useful for me because the dichotomy that it sets up relates a lot to my life purpose: I want to help others and do good (eulogy virtues) by using the things I’ve gained from my resume virtues (achievements and ambition.) To have a life in which I can both say that I had fun and say that I did good for others would be the ideal life for me, which is why it counts as one of my root beliefs. In this way I would say that I agree with the ideals of Carla Harris, in how she says, “Number one: it is what you do for others that counts,” (“Notre Dame Commencement 2021: Laetare Medalist Address” by Carla Harris, Moreau FYE Week Five). I just add a few additional elements to what she says in her speech: I want to be able to use my ambition to forward that goal, and that I also want to make sure I value myself during the process. This is why I loved clubs that let me mentor or tutor kids back at home: it let me improve the lives of others, while also letting me improve my own life (because I love working with kids). Considering this, in the future I plan to join up with some of the volunteer organizations that will let me work with kids at Notre Dame, so I can have the same experience here as I did back home. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MlLWTeApqIM https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UjSwjn-SyB4 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UjSwjn-SyB4