Capstone Integration Capstone Integration April 23, 2022 Moreau Capstone Good. What is “good”? To whom or what does “good” apply? What is living a “good” life? Can “good” be objective, or is it forever subjective in the eyes of the beholder? “I want to change the lives of others, not in crazy ways, but in the sense that their day was better because I interacted with them” (Santiago, 2022). During the first half of the semester, I journeyed to find my conviction. After much thought and realizations, I determined that my one true conviction, although there are probably many others that are still unknown to me, is that I want to be a force for good. For me, “good” can be applied to many things. I can do my best to live a good life. I can try to make others have a good life. I can do good things and make the world better. For me, “good” is benefit. Benefit to myself, others, and society as a whole. That is what good is to me. Good. How do I do good? Is doing good simply just following the law and trying to be a “good” person? Sometimes. But at the core, I believe that one cannot simply just do good, for actions in itself are not worth as much if they are not driven by a cause. For me, that cause is my purpose. Therefore, this leads me to wonder, what is my purpose? As I did in my last journey towards discovering my conviction, I once again practice introspection. When discussing introspection in her article, Tasha Eurich quotes psychologist, Anthony M. Grant, saying, “…people who possess greater insight — which he defines as an intuitive understanding of ourselves — enjoy stronger relationships, a clearer sense of purpose and greater well-being, self-acceptance and happiness…” (Eurich, 2017). Like in my journey towards discovering my conviction, it is also essential for me to have greater insight into myself in order to discover my purpose. While reflecting and gaining more insight into myself, I came to the realization that my purpose is not so much different than my conviction. This is where I was confusing myself. My conviction is not simply my mission statement or some action that I strife to achieve. My conviction is built into my purpose, for a conviction cannot really be a conviction if it is not rooted in a purpose. For conviction is a deep rooted belief and our beliefs come from our purpose in life. All human beings share the same purpose. That purpose is to serve God and to serve others. And how do I accomplish this? I must strive to be the best version of myself every day. The “best version of myself”. That sounds awfully cliche. But if we manage to look past that, it brings up the question? What really is becoming the best version of yourself and how does one go about achieving that? Is it possible? Will we know if we achieved it? I think the answers to these questions differ from person to person, but what I do know is that for me, I can learn about the best version of myself through gaining wisdom. Wisdom from listening to the experiences and advice of others. Wisdom from observing the world around me. Wisdom from reflecting about myself. As Paul Blashcko puts it, we should all “pursue truth” (Blaschko, 2022), and although Professor Blashcko turns to philosophy to do this, I believe that I can do this simply through observation and word of mouth. Through gaining wisdom from others, I can learn what makes up an ideal person, and then I can try to strive to be like that person. One of the main sources of wisdom that I turn to is the Bible, for who is a better example of an ideal person than Jesus himself? By asking myself, “what would Jesus do?”, I am able to try and be the best version of myself every single day. It is difficult to truly help others if we are not first situated with ourselves. This is why it is essential to try to be the best version of ourselves in order to help others. This finally comes back to my main goal. How do I become a force for good? What actions should I take, now that I know what those actions are rooted in? I can be a force for good by leading by example. I feel like I am called to try to make a difference by showing others how to act. Actions speak louder than words and it is necessary for people to see an example of how to act, for in today’s world, many people are so easily taught things just by observation. In his speech to West Point cadets, William Deresiewicz said, “So what I saw around me were great kids who had been trained to be world-class hoop jumpers” (Deresiewicz, 2010). Today, many kids are great “hoop jumpers” because they see everyone else doing the same thing. We learn by example, and I can be a force for good by leading by example. One of the ways that I can lead by example is by showing empathy to others. Today;s world is so self-centered and career-centered that we forget about others. We forget that everyone is going through something. We forget to care about the feelings of others, and on top of that, we do not do anything to help. That needs to change. In her speech, Louise Richardson quotes Atticus Finch, saying, “...to see the world from another’s perspective is a critical life skill” (Richardson, 2018). In order to lead by example, I must be able to have empathy for others and understand what they are feeling, so that I can help relieve some stress or pain. Overall, Moreau has taught me about my convictions, my purpose, and my goals on how to act, and how all of these things are related. All of these aspects in my life lead towards one thing. Transcendence. In the end, everyone is journeying towards transcendence. We all strive to be enlightened. We all want the truth. We all want that ultimate fulfillment. And that fulfillment, that rewards, that truth, that goal of transcendence is what we work for here at Notre Dame, in our future careers, and in our lives.