Theodore Helm Moreau FYE 10102 April 29, 2021 Finding Purpose: Expansion as a Mission Statement Memories, experiences, words, culture, stories, faces, and places all make us who we are. Our identities are all woven together through a core component—a mission statement. It not only forms our judgment, but also shapes every decision we make in our day to day lives. My mission is to expand; this expansion is twofold, both in terms of personal growth, as well as growth with others. I will seek to challenge my current beliefs through acquisition of new knowledge, maintaining an inquisitive and skeptical attitude and filter new information using critical thinking. I also believe that my community should consistently question itself too. First and foremost, this includes re-evaluating what community means, but also who this community is made for. Coming to Notre Dame, I was randomly placed into Breen-Phillips Hall, whose motto is “Best Place, Best People”. Is it truly as good of a place as it claims to be? Who is it the best place for? Is it the best place for a student who is almost always the only person of color in the room? Rather than settling for what is “good enough”, I believe every community should welcome constructive criticism with open arms, listen to its members, and review past mistakes, rather than assuming what is best for everyone based on only one point of view. While I am transferring out of Breen Phillips to live with one of my closest friends in Flaherty, I plan on being involved with dorm commissioners, specifically, the diversity commissioners, in order to ensure incoming freshman and current students feel safe, included, and welcomed. Now that I have spent a year in residential life, I understand what it feels like to be a minority in a dorm that makes little to no effort to acknowledge differences and to bridge them, so I now have a variety of ideas I can work to incorporate (“Exploring a life well-lived - Career Development Reflection” Activity by Meruelo Family Center for Career Development- Moreau FYE Week 4). If the Notre Dame community prides itself on educating both the mind and the heart, then students are responsible for opening both, despite any fear that may surface. I will seek to meet people from all walks of life; this includes people from different ages, countries, ethnicities, sexual orientations, life goals, abilities, in order to stretch my worldview of what I know to be true. While I am a minority in some aspects of my identity, I simultaneously hold a range of privileges—I am straight and cisgender, I have no physical or mental disabilities, I am a documented citizen, I have two biological parents who are still alive, I can afford a college education, etc. In an effort to become more educated on groups that I am not part of, I plan on joining more clubs whose mission is to uplift those who are often underrepresented or discriminated against (“Why the only future worth building includes everyone” by His Holiness Pope Francis - Moreau FYE Week 7). I will seek discomfort by engaging in activities that make me uncomfortable or that I deem to only be achievable by a more developed version of myself. I will consistently go outside of my comfort zone in order to reach my potential. Put simply, I believe that I grow through discomfort. This means actively seeking out situations that are outside of my comfort zone in order to shine light on the weaknesses I need to strengthen. This root belief was the very reason why I decided to enroll at Notre Dame. I do not represent the university’s typical demographic; I am neither white, nor Catholic or part of the Christian faith altogether. However, by purposefully choosing to immerse myself in an environment that is unfamiliar to me, I am able to exercise essential qualities such as open-mindedness, courage, and perseverance. In addition, this discomfort stimulates my curiosity as I am constantly learning new things about other ways of living life, as well as meeting new parts of myself that are exposed as I am put in new situations. (“Week Five Discernment Conversation Activity” - Moreau FYE Week 5) I value my boundaries and do not allow individuals who cross them to stay in my life. Throughout the course of this year I let in a huge influx of new people into my life. While this allowed me to meet new people very easily, I lost sight of the standard I hold myself to and did not filter people according to my values, which led to toxic friendships that I quickly ended. Moving forward, I plan on continuing to meet new people and put myself out there, but with more caution as I am now very aware of how the people we surround ourselves with impact the quality of our days. (“Why we need to slow down our lives” by Pico Iyer - Moreau FYE Week One). The expression ‘you are the average of the five people you spend the most time with’ deeply resonates with me and I intend to keep it in mind in the next three years. In addition, I find it especially important to challenge the claim that it is selfish to refuse to tolerate less than what we deserve, because ultimately, relationships are meant to help us grow. And perhaps one way to forge life-giving relationships is to foster a healthy one with ourselves, first. I will embody patience, kindness, and respect along the way. I will be patient with myself and others as we struggle with obstacles along the way, such as belief that we are not capable, not enough, or not worthy enough. In addition, I value my worth as an individual as intrinsic and unrelated to any achievements or shortcomings I may experience, and the same applies to the people around me. Although I recently joined a psychology lab I’ve wanted to be part of for months, I congratulate myself for the hard work that led to this moment but I do not let this accomplishment completely dictate how I view myself (“Domer Dozen” by Notre Dame Alumni Association - Moreau FYE Week Two). In other words, if I had gotten rejected from the lab I would not have beat myself up for it or viewed my worth any differently. I recognize that I am more than my past, more than my mistakes, and I instead embody compassion to continue to become the best version of myself that I can be. I plan to use my mission statement to keep making mistakes, keep learning, and keep learning along the way, all to ultimately be the best version of myself that I can be along with my classmates. And in order for us to truly do so, it is essential that we show up as we are, fully imperfect. This, to me, is a life well-lived.