Capstone Integration Taylor Kelly Moreau Capstone Integration 29 April 2022 The Pursuit of a Life Well Lived: Emotionally, Physically, Mentally As I sit in front of my laptop, contemplating the specificities of a future that is unpredictable, I find it crucial to first ground myself in the integral values that make up who I am. In attempting to outline what I believe to be true of my life, I generated my personal mission statement. Emotionally, I feel successful when I know that I have people I can turn to for laughs, intellectual conversation, vulnerability, and even silence when necessary. Mentally, I believe success is in stimulation and in happiness. Mental happiness comes from balance in life, but stimulation is something that I must seek. So, in search of challenges, I want to push myself academically and excel at whatever task I take on. Physically, I want to continue to grow in building community, through contributions in sports, school, and my outside life. (“Week 13 Personal Mission Statement by - Moreau FYE Week 13). The mission statement presented above encapsulates what I believe to be the truths about what makes me successful as a person. I find that if one area of my triangle is lacking, I regress as a person, student, friend, brother, son, etc. In using my mission statement to animate the next three years of not only my time at Notre Dame and outside of school also, it's pivotal that I analyze the concrete next steps in how I can fulfill my mission statement. Kicking things off, I am looking forward to the next steps in my academic career as I hit a major transition point in my life. Within the next month, I will receive my Notre Dame acceptance letter and be fully integrated into the school. With this change comes new decisions, https://docs.google.com/document/d/1uh71jugKVmj2g4P_EEjEocZdRJGi1JLzDRq_Xl8jdGQ/edit https://docs.google.com/document/d/1uh71jugKVmj2g4P_EEjEocZdRJGi1JLzDRq_Xl8jdGQ/edit though. In Notre Dame’s Undergraduate Career Services, Navigating Your Journey, they outline an important step in career search process, which is “Study what you enjoy and get involved” (“Navigating Your Career Journey - Moreau First Year Experience Course” by Undergraduate Career Services - Moreau FYE Week Four). The advice provided by the Career Services section helped navigate my mental aspect of my mission statement, in that next year I will be pursuing business analytics (if admitted) and be able to start my career path in the field. I believe this choice is the correct choice for me because not only does it excite me, but it helps stimulate a part of my learning that was never present in school before. As a student growing up, we were always taught the fundamentals of “school”: math, science, history, etc. During my Business Analytics course, I was challenged in coding and problem solving - it changed my perspective. Adding to this topic, it is interesting that my mother told me that she felt I was most challenged and stimulated when I am unbothered, free to problem solve on my own and follow my own natural learning curve (“Week Five Discernment Conversation Activity - Moreau FYE Week Five). In applying her words, I want to continue to seek out my business analytics major by exploring Python and Machine Learning at the 1st floor computer lab, huddled next to other students, all learning. I find that I learn the best when I can struggle with the material. While learning and stimulation are paramount in my development over the next three years, I also want to employ relaxation techniques in order to improve mental happiness, just as Pico Iyer discusses in his article about how top US corporations often allocate time for employee mental breaks (“Why we need to slow down our lives by Pico Iyer - Moreau FYE Week One). In my life for the next three years, a concrete example of how I will pursue mental health is through meditation from yoga in my dorm room at least two times a week. On top of meditation, introspection is also extremely valuable in my mental sanity. Tasha Eurich in “The right way to be introspective” https://undergradcareers.nd.edu/navigating-your-career-journey---moreau/ https://docs.google.com/document/d/1ud7DPbGFBzaWcoMr9OWqrtf9V7X6BMcQ141thpHB6bM/edit https://ideas.ted.com/why-we-need-a-secular-sabbath/ primarily focuses on how individuals can explore self-awareness; her main point is to always ask what, not why. (“The right way to be introspective” by Tasha Eurich - Moreau FYE Week Six). In applying Tasha’s methodology, I want to start writing down in a notebook the questions that I have during my day. What went wrong with my friend? What can I do better to study next time? These questions will help guide me over the next three years. While my mental health is paramount in me living a life-well lived, my emotional health is also equally important. As outlined in my mission statement, I feel successful when I know that I have people I can turn to for laughs, intellectual conversation, vulnerability, and even silence when necessary. An important aspect of my emotional health also stems from inclusivity and solidarity. In Pope Francis’ TED Talk, he describes how we must treat each individual with respect and dignity because at any moment, that person could contribute something great to your life (“Why the only future worth building includes everyone” by Pope Francis - Moreau FYE Week Seven). In responding to Pope Francis’ sentiments, I want to strive to become a more inclusive member of the Notre Dame community. In doing so, I plan on running for my hall’s council next year, hoping to secure a position. If I were given the position, my plan would be to turn whatever hall I am thrown into into a place for discussion, equality, and inclusivity. Speaking of acceptance, Jacob Walsh discusses his process of growing up gay and Catholic. He found that acceptance in itself is where we ultimately true beauty in our lives (“Growing up Gay and Catholic by Jacob Walsh - Moreau FYE Week 10). Not only did Walsh find beauty in acceptance, but he also found how valuable support systems are through Tyler. In my life, I find that accepting friends is pivotal for my mental health; in the next three years, I wish to visit my original Gateway friends at least three times a week, despite being in different dorms, to check in and maintain my relationships while also expanding my network of friends. With this in mind https://ideas.ted.com/the-right-way-to-be-introspective-yes-theres-a-wrong-way/ https://www.ted.com/talks/his_holiness_pope_francis_why_the_only_future_worth_building_includes_everyone/transcript https://grottonetwork.com/keep-the-faith/community/reflective-narrative-about-being-gay-and-catholic/ https://grottonetwork.com/keep-the-faith/community/reflective-narrative-about-being-gay-and-catholic/ arises the theme of accompaniment. In Steve Reifenberg’s account of his trip to South Africa, he discussed accompaniment as a two way street, both the person helping and the person being helped (“Teaching Accompaniment: A Learning Journey Together by Steven Reifenberg - Moreau FYE Week Nine). Growing up, I found that I also felt better knowing someone had my back, and that I had theirs. This, in its essence, is accompaniment, and it is crucial for my emotional health. In the next three years, with COVID-19 now being over, I want to make a return visit to Cambodia where I used to do service work at the FLOW Orphanage. While there, I want to help teach the young students English, math, and science, and they can accompany me in teaching me to garden and do other chores around the orphanage. It’s a bright spot in my life. I feel emotionally fulfilled while cultivating relationships; I also find it important in my life to have physical action in order to harness strong communities. In Father Hesburgh’s movie, a major theme found is that community is cultivated through hard work, sacrifice, and a constant push towards leadership (“Hesburgh” by Patrick Creadon - Moreau FYE Week Two). In light of Hesburgh’s constant pursuit of a great community, I also want to become a face of change. In the next coming years, my goal is to run for a chair in the Asian Business Society, a club that I have been apart of since the beginning of this year. If I were to receive the position, I would uphold Hesburgh’s sentiments and advance the club community. Improving the club’s community would include promoting a more inclusive atmosphere towards non-Asian students. As it stands, the title “Asian Business Society” attracts mainly ethnically Asian individuals. If given a better position, I would love to spread a positive word through events, such as the beginning of the year student club event. In combination with Hesburgh’s community building, Dean G. Marcus Cole discusses his experiences with racial brutality and ultimately spreads the message that we must be accepting in order to ignite change (“I am George Floyd. Except, I can breathe. And I can do https://docs.google.com/document/d/1hZbSdVImfn2hZDqMrdL96dZCNOtHuf6C-lg3sH-Rs30/edit https://notredame.hosted.panopto.com/Panopto/Pages/Viewer.aspx?id=10159379-7eca-4549-8581-ab9500c9ecd9 https://law.nd.edu/news-events/news/dean-g-marcus-cole-i-am-george-floyd-except-i-can-breathe-and-i-can-do-something/ something.'” by Dean G. Marcus Cole - Moreau FYE Week 12). In the next three years, in order to create physical change in my home, I want to give back my time during summers to coach a summer basketball camp in which I used to play in. While I may not be stopping racism, I want to give back to my community and invite a helping hand to help kids with a simple task, such as basketball. Staying with the topic of basketball, it was during my exploration of Ruth Graham’s discussion about the realizing death is imminent and living everyday with intention did I make a discovery about my next three years at Notre Dame (“Meet the Nun Who Wants You to Remember You Will Die” by Ruth Graham - Moreau FYE Week Three). During my entire life, I have always focused on sports for enjoyment; however, during this past year, I have given up my passions to pursue academics. In the next three years, I want to use Ruth’s teachings and give basketball my all, hoping to make and play on the Notre Dame club team. While this task will be difficult, it's in physical tasks where I find myself successful. The next steps in this process are going to be pushing myself out of my comfort circle and zone, putting myself into challenging games, against challenging players, and challenging exercise. I learned the importance of pushing myself out of my comfort zone through Dr. Paul Blaschko’s video about Echo chambers, where it is explained that the groups who surround us in life are often reinforcing ideas that are already true (“How to Avoid an Echo Chamber by Paul Blaschko - Moreau FYE Week 11). In order for me to pursue my true passion athletically, I need to explore new individuals who can push me to be better. This may entail me getting beaten badly on the court by better players here at school for practice, or playing with my cousin who plays Division 1 basketball. Despite the path I take, it must be in pursuit of bettering myself. Over the course of Moreau, I have slowly but surely been able to figure out what it means to live a life well-lived. For me, it is the intersection of mental, emotional, and physical success. https://law.nd.edu/news-events/news/dean-g-marcus-cole-i-am-george-floyd-except-i-can-breathe-and-i-can-do-something/ https://www.nytimes.com/2021/05/14/us/memento-mori-nun.html https://www.nytimes.com/2021/05/14/us/memento-mori-nun.html https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GaIVxQcqnLs&t=1s Supported by the materials in Moreau, I expressed concrete examples of how I plan to tackle these pillars of my success in realistic ways over the next three years. However, given the variability of life itself, it would be ignorant to expect everything to go as planned. When I run into these imminent obstacles during my time as a student, my reaction will define my mission statement. If I am mentally tested in a way where I am struggling, such as my coursework, my response will be to seek out additional tutoring, help from peers, and also adjusting my mindset to understand that grades do not define my life. Emotionally, if I feel that I am distancing myself from friends and community, I will have to simply refocus my attention and express to my friends that other aspects of my life consumed me, but I am willing to work towards sustainability and better communication. Physically, if I lose focus of my community goals or my own personal athletic goals, I will need to recenter myself and understand why I first started. I will question myself ‘what brought me to this point?’ Sometimes remembering our origins can help immensely in getting back on the right path. Overall, if I can continue to adjust to my goals, I believe I will live a good life over the next three years.