Microsoft Word - Moreau Integration Final Draft.docx Moreau First-Year Experience Integration 1 Pedro Bolsonaro Making the Dome my new Home: What Notre Dame revealed to me about myself. When I received my acceptance letter from Notre Dame, I was beyond excited about being inserted in an environment where I would not only develop my academic and professional prowess, but also flourish spiritually. I knew that what made Notre Dame stand out from other universities was exactly the opportunity to consider and internalize grand questions such as: “who I am?” and “what do I believe?”. Through the Moreau FYE I have been challenged to critically reflect on these questions and engage with peers from different cultural, religious and geographic backgrounds as myself, further encouraging my standing within my community. My eight weeks of incredible experiences and lessons at Notre Dame had led me to forge a fair understanding of my root beliefs – the fundamental creeds that underpin the ventures I undertake, the thoughts in mind, and the character of my soul. These can be resumed below: 1. I believe I am searching for life-long meaningful relationships (W1) and a balance between personal and resumé virtues (W2). 2. I believe my purpose is to authentically and meaningfully embark on a journey of self- discovery (W3). 3. I believe I grow by using failure as a lesson (W5) and by discerning bad relationships and acting on them (W4). 4. I think I am responsible for reflecting on my upbringing and giving back to my community (W6) while pursuing the truth at all costs (W7). In the first two weeks of the course, I was invited to ponder on my aspirations, whether that is within my community or for my own personal goals and objectives. In week 1, I concluded that I found happiness in building life-long and meaningful relationships, and that these genuine connections were achieved when we allowed ourselves to become vulnerable. I was inspired by Dr. Brown’s TED talk, where she said, “this idea that for connection to happen, we must have to allow ourselves to be seen, really seen (“The Power of Vulnerability” by Brené Brown – Moreau FYE Week One)”. I have taken the initiative to be less reclusive about my insecurities and fears and share these more with friends and family. Though it has been a challenge as growing up I tended to be more apprehensive and reserved, particularly regarding insecurities, I have seen that often we end up sharing a common vulnerability, which creates a very powerful connection. On that same note, I believe I am also searching for a balance between personal and resumé virtues. The concept of personal and resumé virtues was first introduced to me by David Brooks when he said “Item 1 is the worldly, ambitious, external side of our nature. The side that wants to build, create, create companies, create innovation. Item 2 is the humble side of our nature. Item 2 is to do good to be good. To live in a way internally, that honors God, creation, and our possibility. (“Should You Live for Your Resume or Your Eulogy?” by David Brooks – Moreau FYE Week 2)” Growing up, I always wondered about what approach to life I wanted to take. Questions like, “should I become an academic researcher in Indiana or become a missionary in Chad?” kept me up at night. The content of week 2 has showed me that perhaps the best course of action – I say “best” because there is no “right” – is finding a balance and living the best of both paths. One path is not mutually exclusive with the other, in fact they may be intertwined. Your eulogy may be plenished with remarks of how determined of an entrepreneur you were, or how you turned the fortunes of your family around in the same way that your resumé might highlight your honesty with co-workers or your integrity when faced with a complicated situation. In week 3, students were encouraged to tackle purpose and consider their deepest motivations and meaning. After engaging with week 3 content, I believe my purpose is to authentically and meaningfully embark on a journey of self-discovery. Fr. Pete’s words was a great inspiration for me, particularly when he said, “The greatest journey you’ll ever go on is one of self-discovery. In this journey, success and productivity and failure are an afterthought. What truly matters is authentically responding to the best of your ability as the person you know yourself to be. (“The Role of Faith in Our Story” by Fr. Pete McCormick, C.S.C. – Moreau FYE Week 3)” I find authenticity to be crucial in our path to self-discovery as without it we will never discover who our genuine selves are. If we do not find that, we will never explore the world and those around us to our fullest capacity. It has been a formidable challenge for me because often I am often insecure of my behavior or want to provoke a reaction of out of someone or want others to think of myself in a certain way. However, that is not being authentic as we are making ourselves something that we really are not. That is why here at Notre Dame I want to authentically develop not only my intellectual aura but also my heart and soul, discover and flourish my own spirituality, and become a beacon of good in the world for those around me. In the midway stage of the course, students were asked to consider what made them grow as individuals and as a member of a community. By the end of the week, I discerned that I enjoyed most growth when I strived for new endeavors, and in the advent of failure, reflected and learned from such experience. Carla Harris, in a public address event at Notre Dame said “what’s the worst that can happen if you take a risk and it doesn’t work out? So, you fail, but know this: failure always brings you a gift, and that gift is called experience – now you know how to do better, now you know how to do it differently, now you know how to do it successfully. (“2021 Laetare Medalist Address” by Carla Harris – Moreau Week 5). These words greatly resonated with me because for the longest time I was terrified of failure. I was scared that if I tried something, truly gave it my all, and still failed, it would disincentivize me from trying other new things; the fact of the matter was, I was not trying anything at all in the first place. Furthermore, as a freshman, there’s nothing more important now than for me to escape my comfort zone and try out new things. From the simplest of actions, like starting a conversation with a fellow stranger student to more complex and challenging endeavors like applying for an internship at a large corporation, it always starts with the first step. In both cases similarly, if things did not turn out the way I wanted them to, so be it, at least I assumed that risk and learned from that experience. If things do go well, even better, I have achieved that which I wanted most. The truth of the matter is that trying out new things and taking risks always amounts to a win-win outcome. I decided to carry Ms. Harris’ words very close to heart as I am sure they will prove invaluable as I try to grow and become the best version of myself intellectually, spiritually, and physically. Another way I believe I grow is when I successfully choose friendships that truly aggregate value and happiness to my life. When reading the article provided within the content bundle of week 4, a phrase particularly stuck out from the text, “if the majority of the things that come out of your friend’s mouth is a complaint or has some sort of a negative angle, you’re probably not having the most fun with them. (Five Signs You’re in a Toxic Friendship by Olivia Taylor – Moreau FYE Week 4” At the time this was very relevant as I had just become close friends with a person that could not help but complain about school, friends and life all the time we were together. Despite being tolerable in the beginning, it got to a point where my entire mood changed just be listening to all the negativity that she released on me. Instead of being a valuable friendship which helped me grow as a person (after all what are friends but those who push you to be better), I found myself getting worse every time I engaged in a conversation with her. Putting the coursework I had just learned to practice, I started to distance myself gradually from them, which was difficult because the first step is always the hardest. However, as I did it become easier to take the next step, and then the next one, and the next, until eventually I was able to completely detach from that friendship and live more positively. Finally, in the latter stages of the seven-week journey, we appraised and considered our responsibilities. I concluded that my biggest responsibilities, approaching it from a grand scale, was to reflect on my upbringing and give back to my community while pursuing the truth at all costs. In week 6, students wrote a poem about their background and reflected on their upbringing. It was personally a very enjoyable experience as I could reminisce about Brazil and critically analyze, now with an external perspective, about the good and things of my native country. My conclusion reinforced a notion I previously had which is that I find myself in a privileged position where I am morally responsible for giving back to my community and those who supported my journey insofar. It is very easy to look at Brazil from an outside perspective and see just the positive side of it – beaches, soccer, beautiful nature, and cordial people – and forget about the underlying but widespread issues that plague our country. I noted some of them in my poem, “We see poverty, dangerous streets, an uneducated population and widespread corruption, we see the things people from the outside don’t see.” That is why with the education I receive here, in order to make my contribution back to society meaningful, I must help others around me also be better, and inspire them to do good in the world, in the same way that I am trying to. I also believe I am responsible for pursuing the truth at all costs. There is nothing more noble and virtuous that detaching yourself from your most heartfelt beliefs and working together with others to pursue the truth. To pursue the truth in a world where we are bombarded with distraction not only from the outside, but also the inside, is the ultimate intellectual goal to strive for. In a world permeated with social media and quick information spread, there are so many examples of stories being exaggerated and manipulated to fit certain agendas, it becomes an extremely difficult task to pursue the truth. As Chimamanda Adichie points out, “the consequence of a single story is this: it robs people of dignity. (“Danger of a Single Story” by Chimamanda Adichie – Moreau FYE Week 7). That is why we should always strive to look for multiple sources and benchmark you own opinions and the facts you receive with other people, to see if the information you are receiving is impartial and true. This way we can safeguard ourselves against fake news and all the detrimental consequences of it. It sounds trivial just one individual deciding to take this initiative within a network of millions of users, but if we can inspire others to follow suit, then the virtual culture that we have in place contemporarily can be readily and effectively changed. That is why I hold so much responsibility in this sense, it does not only pertain for myself, but also for the well-being of others around me. Bibliography (“The Power of Vulnerability” by Brené Brown, TedxHouston– Moreau FYE Week 1 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X4Qm9cGRub0&list=PLmiPsabET- W_hjesjTZaITh2s1WbM-Kd0&index=3) (“Should You Live for Your Resume or Your Eulogy?” by David Brooks) – Moreau FYE Week 2” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MlLWTeApqIM) (“The Role of Faith in Our Story” by Fr. Pete McCormick, C.S.C. – Moreau FYE Week 3 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lcZMeqWWOIs) (“2021 Laetare Medalist Address” by Carla Harris – Moreau Week 5 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UjSwjn-SyB4) (Five Signs You’re in a Toxic Friendship by Olivia Taylor – Moreau FYE Week 4 https://grottonetwork.com/navigate-life/relationships/signs-of-toxic-friendships/) (“Danger of a Single Story” by Chimamanda Adichie – Moreau FYE Week 7 https://www.ted.com/talks/chimamanda_ngozi_adichie_the_danger_of_a_single_story)