Moreau Integration 1 (What do I believe) 10/8/2021 Moreau FYS Integration Paper Challenges, Growth, and Hope I believe that I struggle to find belonging in Notre Dame. I believe that my purpose is to spread joy. I believe that God has blessed me. I believe that I need support from healthy friendships. I believe that I will encounter much failure and growth soon. I believe that I am from parents who gave everything for me and my siblings. I believe that I want my perspectives to change. Shifting to college life in Notre Dame posed a great challenge for me. I rarely travel and Indiana is far away from my home in Washington. Traveling alone made me feel very lonely and I miss my home greatly. Comparing myself to others has lowered my self esteem greatly. I have felt as if I am not smart enough to belong in Notre Dame. On my latino FYR, there was a speaker who talked about his struggles coming here and it sounded oddly familiar to my current situation. I am comforted knowing that I am not the only one struggling or who has struggled. I have found that being vulnerable with my friends, family, and others has grown my connection with others and allowed me to find more belonging. “I know that vulnerability is kind of the core of shame and fear and our struggle for worthiness but it appears that it's also the birthplace of joy, of creativity, of belonging, and of love” (“The Power of Vulnerability” by Brené Brown - Moreau FYE Week One). Especially in my Moreau class, I feel comfortable being vulnerable and expressing my struggles and this has helped me find a sense of belonging here. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X4Qm9cGRub0&feature=youtu.be I love to make others happy. When I am comfortable with the people around me, I love to make jokes. I think I have a good sense of humor and I can bring light to most situations. Sometimes I can also struggle to take things seriously. I found that humor is my strongest character trait through the character strength survey (“VIA Character Strengths Survey” - Moreau FYE Week Two). I believe that these results are accurate because I have used jokes countless times to bring joy to others. Because humor is such a strong trait of mine, I believe that I should use it as much as I can to spread positivity and joy to everyone I encounter. Much of my life’s struggles root from the fact that I was raised in a low income household of seven children. I sometimes am angry at God for my family’s struggles however I always come back to him. Though this situation is not ideal, I have been shown great generosity in my life and have been presented with great opportunities. I believe that these challenges have only grown my relationship with the Lord. In the student reflections on faith, I connected with Cheyenne’s response. She claimed that times of spiritual desolation can be perceived as a gift because they invite her to evaluate life in its current state and trust God more fully (“Student Reflections on faith” by Campus Ministry - Moreau FYE Week Three). I believe that God has challenged me for my own growth and blessed me with greater faith in the long run. I believe that I have found multiple great friends in my life who will stick with me through my life. Coming to Notre Dame made me realize how precious every moment with my friends is. An article I read for this class pointed out many toxic friendship examples such as only talking about negative things, repeated bailing, and talking behind backs (“5 Signs You’re in a Toxic Friendship” by Olivia T. Taylor - Mareau FYE Week Four). There have been multiple instances since arriving on campus where I have overheard gossip. It seems useless and childish to me in most cases and I am glad to know my friends have my back. Having these healthy https://canvas.nd.edu/courses/23692/modules/items/104133 https://drive.google.com/file/d/1YVemqUBaAs5DNBPYm806TyQZr3F0xElP/view?usp=sharing https://drive.google.com/file/d/1YVemqUBaAs5DNBPYm806TyQZr3F0xElP/view?usp=sharing https://canvas.nd.edu/courses/23692/modules/items/104153 https://canvas.nd.edu/courses/23692/modules/items/104153 friendships also gives me motivation in life because I hope to work hard and repay my close friends who have been so generous and supportive to me. I am currently majoring in Mechanical Engineering and I know the journey will be very difficult. I have talked to many engineers and they all have a common theme of terrible workloads and difficulties. As of now, I am planning to stick with the program and persevere through any struggles that come my way. I know I will face challenges that I am not used to but I know they will only make me grow stronger. My current dedication relates to the following quote, “This college will be one of the most powerful means of doing good in this country” (Fr Sorin Letter to Bl. Basil Moreau - Moreau FYE Week Five). I know by facing any challenges that come my way, I will grow in my abilities to do good. I want to use my growth and strength to make a positive impact on this world. As mentioned earlier, I have struggled with my family situation. I now realize that I have been very ungrateful and selfish in my life. I have also falsely looked at myself as the victim of many situations. Being independent and away from home has dramatically changed my perspective on my parents. Writing the poem about where I am from reminded me that without my parents I would not exist and I owe everything to them (“Where I’m From” Poetry - Moreau FYE Week Six). I now realize how much time and effort they put in to raise my siblings and I. My dad worked so much overtime and was exhausting himself so we could attend private schools. My mom spent most of her time doing home chores and taking us to places we needed to go. I am now sad about many times in my childhood where I was angry at my parents for not being able to provide for everything. Instead of taking into account that my parents were doing their best to provide for the family, I was upset that I could not have everything I wanted. This is https://drive.google.com/file/d/1o56woQDq3QrRkziT8eYrvYly5CQaP2Vb/view https://drive.google.com/file/d/1o56woQDq3QrRkziT8eYrvYly5CQaP2Vb/view https://canvas.nd.edu/courses/23692/modules/items/104174 the root of some of my life’s biggest regrets and I hope to be successful enough to repay my parents for all the love they have given me. My selfishness has also led to ignorance and poor assumptions. I have been a very judgemental person in my past and I am still working very hard to better myself. I want to respect everyone around me however I often find myself thinking upon my implicit biases when interacting with new people. My previous schools held very little diversity and this was the source of much of my close-mindedness. I have met many new people and created false images in my mind based on our first impressions. I hope to be curious and figure out people’s true stories before I try to assume who they really are. The TED talk by Chimimanda Adichie perfectly summed up how we all have biases and why we should not lean into them (“Danger of a Single Story” by Chimimanda Ngozi Adichie - Moreau FYE Week Six). I loved talking to my peers in Moreau about our own biases and how they have affected our relationships. My experience with Notre Dame and the Moreau FYE has made me think about and challenge my core values. In my life I have gone through many challenges and have grown so much throughout the years. I know I will continue to be challenged and still have more room to grow. I hope that my experiences will continue to change my perspective on life and help me solidify my beliefs. I will continue to put myself in uncomfortable situations and actively seek ways to understand who I truly am. https://www.ted.com/talks/chimamanda_ngozi_adichie_the_danger_of_a_single_story https://www.ted.com/talks/chimamanda_ngozi_adichie_the_danger_of_a_single_story