Intergration Assignment 1- Irons The Iron Law by Jacob Irons Root Belief #1: I believe that all people are unique and should never be judged for being different. I have always been seen as the weird kid that announces. When I would travel to other schools and broadcast, I would come in with a suit, and everyone would stop and stare at me. I would always get weird looks or be made fun of as I walked by with my briefcase. I began to get to a point where I felt shame for being the kid who wanted to be the broadcast. Dr. Brown elaborates in her Ted Talk, “ Is there something about me that, if others... see it, that I won’t be worthy of connection?” (“The Power of Vulnerability” by Brené Brown - Moreau FYE Week One). I got to a point where I felt immense shame for being the kid who broadcasted. I would always avoid the student section since I never wanted to be seen as the broadcast kid. I was fearful that if it got to a point where it just defined me. I wanted to make sure this never stopped me from creating a connection with someone, as Dr. Brown said. It took me until my senior year of high school to fully understand this belief due to the thanks of my high school principal. I intentionally walked around a student section while he just walked straight by. He asked me why I did that, and I explained that I was getting picked on. He began to tell me that no one should ever be judged or stereotyped for who they were. In week seven we were asked to watch a video from Mrs. Ngozi Adichie ted talk that resembled much like the speech my principal gave me. “The problem with stereotypes is not that they are untrue, but that they are incomplete” (“The Danger of a Single Story” by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie Moreau FYE Week Seven). Everyone has the things that make them who they are and should never be ashamed. They are creating this stereotype of yourself when this is not the full stroy. He followed with remember you are an all-confrence athlete, class president and so much more. He said never lose sight of this when someone is making fun of your one little thing. In a high school gym, it took me to this very moment to realize everyone is unique and should never be judged for being different. If it were never for my high school principal, I would never have been able to live this belief fully. It goes back to David’s Brooks point, “Nothing we do, however virtuous, can be accomplished alone” (“Should you live for your résumé ... or your eulogy?” by David Brooks - Moreau FYE Week Two). Although I would like to say I came to this belief on my own and it was solely my idea, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X4Qm9cGRub0&feature=youtu.be 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 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MlLWTeApqIM this is not the case. The help of my high school principal allowed me to find this root belief and truly live it out. Root Belief #2: I believe that I am searching for lifelong relationships. Everyone is looking for life-giving friendships. This was one of the most heavily talked about, I felt, in my group. This belief has been with me since the day I was introduced to schooling. I have always been a social child and want to become best friends with everyone. Sadly as I grew up, I learned this is not the case. Due in fact that, “I am from a town with more children than adults” (“Where I Call My Hometown” by Jacob Irons - Moreau FYE Week Six). I have lived in a town where for the past two censuses where the number of children out numbered the amount of people over the age of 18. Making the task of becoming everyone’s friend a hard reality. So once relaying this task would be challenging, I made the change to ensure that if I were going to be someone’s friend, it would be meaningful. From that moment I started looking for truly lifelong relationships. However, this belief became challenged after I met my ex-girlfriend. She was a transfer student and was genuinely interested in my sports broadcasting. It had started to become where I felt I had really made a life-long connection. Although, this was not the case sadly. After breaking up I relaized she was just using me to get into games and all the perks of working in the athletic department. It goes back to what we talked about in week four, “They use you to get what they want. Nothing feels worse than being used in any relationship” (“5 Signs You’re in a Toxic Freinship” by Olivia Taylor Moreau FYE Week 4). This is exactly how I felt after this connection was ultimately abused by my counterpart. I wanted to rush by this moment and pretend that I was not used for my access. I ran away from facing this fear and reality that I had been abused. However, I turned to one of the only true consistents in my life which was faith. Attempting to try and make the healing process better I just continued to look for God and it really never came until I finally sat down and realized what had happened. Father Pete in the week three video I think hit the nail on the head, “Be patient. When you are in a hurry faith becomes so much harder to understand” (The Role of Faith in Our Story” by Father Pete McCormick, C.S.C. Moreau FYE Week 3). Once I had taken the time and really hit the breaks I began to understand that I should not be discouraged from this goal due to one bad egg. This is why today you can see me having a conversation with basically anyone whom is willing to have one. https://docs.google.com/document/u/0/d/1U63hydvIiuLrBLFJsxHtGbdOb3XKMM-g2-H39qWVo1M/edit https://grottonetwork.com/navigate-life/relationships/signs-of-toxic-friendships/ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lcZMeqWWOIs&feature=youtu.be&ab_channel=UniversityofNotreDameCampusMinistry https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lcZMeqWWOIs&feature=youtu.be&ab_channel=UniversityofNotreDameCampusMinistry Root Belife #3: I believe that failure shapes me into the person I am today. This belief is one that I never realied until I got here to the campus of the University of Notre Dame. In high school I flew by every task and assignment. I was smart, I tried and was naturally gifted throughout my early years of education. Attending here is a dream to say the least; however, I felt like I would just jump right into naturally gilding through academics and extracurriculars. I was given a rude awakwening after my first exam. It was my science elective thinking that how much harder or challenging could this be then what I saw in high school. I will never do this again. I ultimately due to the lack of study and preparing got a 69. Once opening gradebook I fell paralized. I had just gotten this worst grade in my entire life on a test on my first college exam. I panicked and felt like a complete idiot and felt that maybe I did not belong here after all. Panicking call my parents said well let’s never do this again and make sure that you take this and use it as a learning experience. To the words of Carala Harris, “Failure always brings you a gift” (“2021 Laetare Medalist Address” by Carla Harris Moreau FYE Week 5). I was left wondering what in the world the gift I could get from this immense failure. Then I realized that the gift was understanding failure. I had never truly been hit with failure before. I grew from this moment understanding that failure is not a bad experience but rather a learning experience. I have channeled since getting here turning them into a gift for myself and to learn from. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UjSwjn-SyB4