Moreau2 Integration 1 Valeria Pérez Negrón Professor Theo Helm Moreau FYE Mar 4, 2022 Valeria: A Canvas Full of Purposeful Brushstrokes: Valeria was a person who knew how to live her life remembering the importance of taking her time to appreciate life, live it to the fullest, while always searching how to help others. Like everyone else, Valeria was often overwhelmed by the daily work, responsibilities and stress of life, but she was not satisfied with living a life of anxieties and loneliness. After seeing that her personal performance was not the best when she was immersed in everyday problems, she learned to apply what she once saw in an article by Pico Iyer: “It's only by stepping farther back and standing still that we can begin to see what that canvas (which is our life) really means, and to take in a larger picture” (“Why we need to slow down our lives” by Pico Iyer - Moreau FYE Week One). This directed the path of her life and it was at that moment that she decided to choose the brushstrokes that would create the canvas of her life. Valeria worked every day to be a better person and be able to take advantage of her life. She looked for a way to focus her energy on achieving her vocation, and carrying it out looking to find joy in everything she did. She understood that many times the not so happy moments are the ones that taught her lessons. She always applied a quote from Sister Aletheia that said: “But it is actually in facing the darkest realities of life that we find light in them” (“Meet the Nun Who Wants You to Remember You Will Die” by Ruth Graham - Moreau FYE Week Three). Many times to find that light, she sought to trust others and their opinions about her strengths and weaknesses since she recognized how difficult it can sometimes be to self-diagnose oneself and to find what she could contribute https://ideas.ted.com/why-we-need-a-secular-sabbath/ https://www.nytimes.com/2021/05/14/us/memento-mori-nun.html https://www.nytimes.com/2021/05/14/us/memento-mori-nun.html to make an impact on others lives. She listened to the opinion of the one who knew her best, her mother, and understood how her leadership ability could help others and how to have a greater impact she had to control and improve her sometimes lack of patience with people. Valeria set herself to take this role of leadership throughout the rest of her life and applied Father Hesburgh wise words in her daily life: “But I took a stance for something and I wasn’t about to stop” (“Hesburgh” by Jerry Barca and Christine O'Malley - Moreau FYE Week Two). Valeria put herself to this task of becoming an instrument of change in the world and like Hesburgh, she never gave up. Early in her college life when she was at the University of Notre Dame, she understood that in order to know what she was capable of, she had to take risks. It was following these wise words: “The only way to know more about yourself is to test the waters - just get out and experience life” (“Navigating Your Career Journey - Moreau First Year Experience Course” by MERUELO FAMILY CENTER FOR CAREER DEVELOPMENT - Moreau FYE Week Four), that she decided to follow at her young age of 19, what she thought her vocation was. Valeria always showed love for community service and science. From a very young age, she stood out as a leader in her school and in community activities. Managing to add value to the lives of the people around her. Like all human beings, she also had her flaws, because it was sometimes difficult for her to have patience with those who did not have her same priorities and many times it was difficult for her to avoid getting frustrated, annoyed, and even avoid pressuring others to be like her. But something I tried to apply was that “anytime you're getting defensive you are getting less effective. When you get defensive your thinking become rigid and you simply become stupid” (“5 Minutes” by Aria Swarr - Moreau FYE Week Six). That's why I try to be more flexible and know the signs that let her know when she was losing her temper and getting https://notredame.hosted.panopto.com/Panopto/Pages/Viewer.aspx?id=10159379-7eca-4549-8581-ab9500c9ecd9 https://undergradcareers.nd.edu/navigating-your-career-journey---moreau/ https://grottonetwork.com/make-an-impact/transform/why-does-god-allow-suffering/?utm_source=moreau&utm_medium=class&utm_campaign=spring_2022 defensive. Being able to be assertive and patient not only helped her in her student life, it also helped her to be a successful professional. She focused on looking for the positive side of situations that at first glance were not positive, and this way of looking at life helped her to combat the obstacles that came her way and allowed her to respond effectively. Something important that Valeria always kept in mind was the connection that her life had with other people and with the world in general. For her the feeling of connection with the others was very important. That is why she dedicated her life from a very young age to community service. Trying to give those most in need a little of her time and effort. One of the activities that we all remember of Valeria where she was able to have that feeling of connection, was when she helped to get decent health care services to disadvantaged communities. From collecting basic necessities for survivors of natural disasters, to participating in health clinics for indigent people, to collecting Christmas toys for underprivileged children, these activities and many others marked the beginning of her trying to make a difference in the world and its meaning of connection and empathy with those most in need. She loved the words of Pope Francis who said, “everything is connected and we need to restore our connections to a healthy state” (“Why the only future worth building includes everyone” by Pope Francis - Moreau FYE Week Seven) and she always tried to live by them. But it was not easy, humanity has already lost that feeling of solidarity, we are so surrounded by need that many times we become immune to pain and continue our lives without caring about the pain of the other. Many times she also had a hard time accepting what is different and not judging. Fighting against stereotypes was something that she tried to overcome. She always talked about how as a child she was afraid of people on the street, because she let her ignorant, naive self, be led by prejudice and stereotypes imposed by society. Through the years she matured and understood that they were only people https://www.ted.com/talks/his_holiness_pope_francis_why_the_only_future_worth_building_includes_everyone/transcript like her who, due to different situations, had ended up on the streets. It was so much that she wanted to connect and help these people that she even participated in health clinics aimed to help the homeless. This was a great lesson in Valeria's life that helped learn from her experience and how not to judge others. Today we can remember Valeria as a person who tried to live a life with purpose. Her constant desire to help and contribute to make a difference was palpable throughout her life. She lived a full life, where she was able to find a balance between work, responsibilities, enjoyment and helping others. Today let's remember Valeria as a woman who knew how to choose the best brushstrokes to make the canvas of her life, one that left indelible marks on the lives she touched and gave the world the best version of herself. She is our example to follow, let's try to emulate her principles of life.