Moreau ∫∫∫∫∫∫∫ Assignment 10/15/2021 Friendly Learning—The Way to a Healthy Life The path through life may not be crystal-clear, but there are things we naturally do to guide ourselves through it. Two of those things are the act of learning and having friends. It is my belief that in my life and others, learning and friends are the two most important guiding factors, and that fostering healthy knowledge and relationships will lead to a better, more healthy life for both myself and those around me. Learning is very important to living a fulfilling life, as well as to being an upstanding member of society. Learning can be in the sense of knowledge, and in that case I personally find it fun and fulfilling to know about as many different things as possible so that I am not ignorant of important elements to our lives and society. However, learning can also be in the sense of gaining a broad understanding of others and their own perspectives and knowledge on the world. This is a crucial element of learning that many in societies both past and contemporary have severely neglected. Rather than attempting to take into account the variety of viewpoints and backgrounds of our society, people tend to squeeze and shove diverse groups of people under generalizing labels and ideas; this is known as stereotyping, and is bad because it unjustly and unfairly assumes things, often very negative ones, on people without any regard to the individual’s actual persona. Stereotyping relies on flawed reasoning; it involves inductively assuming the traits of a group based on scattered (usually cherry-picked) examples, despite that a single counterexample is enough to invalidate inductive logic, and then from that it deductively places said traits onto individuals just because they are a part of the group in question. The evil of stereotyping has leached itself so deeply into society that it can affect people at the subconscious level, even when they are trying to be as impartial as possible; this is the issue of implicit bias, which even today causes substantial issues such as people unfoundedly perceiving African-Americans as more cold and violent (“How to Think About Implicit Bias” by Payne, Neimi, and Doris—Moreau Week 7). These problems are only a small sampling of the many widespread societal problems caused by a lack of willingness or emphasis on understanding and learning about others and their own perspectives. I believe that through learning about others, these problems and my impact on them can be mitigated. For me and those around me to have the best possible lives, coming to a mutual understanding of each other will be best, so that we can avoid harming each other and rather can boost ourselves. Learning about others may be good, but it should also go the other way: others should be able to learn about you and me. It is important that you make yourself vulnerable to others so that they may learn about you. Do not be shameful and unwilling to open up; as Dr. Brown says in her TEDx talk, “...shame is really easily understood as the fear of disconnection.” Often it is so that by staying shy for fear of humiliation, others do not get the chance to understand or connect with you in the first place (“The Power of Vulnerability” by Brené Brown—Moreau Week 1). Actively showing vulnerability will not only open up others to your own perspectives, but will also help foster a sense of community and mutual understanding, and help you express your true self Additionally, it is important for me to come to an understanding of inner self. Knowing where we’re from and what we want can help us identify our values and priorities and overall contribute to better mental health. It is helpful for one to introspect on what led them to be who they are; one way to do this is to write a “Where I’m From” poem (“Where I’m From” by https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/how-to-think-about-implicit-bias/ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X4Qm9cGRub0 http://www.georgeellalyon.com/where.html George Ella Lyon—Moreau Week 6). In addition, through inner reflection, we can tackle our issues and refine our character, as character building is not just about building on our strengths, but also about addressing our weaknesses (“Should You Live for your Resume or Your Eulogy” by David Brooks—Moreau Week 2). Overall, our past is tied with our character and our future, and our inner self is connected with everything we do and how we think. Being very in-tune with the inner self is thus very helpful in life. Connected with the idea of learning about others is the idea of becoming friends with others. Friendship is extremely important to life as a whole. Friends provide emotional support, happiness, interactions that help mutually build character, and overall are very good to have. However, friendships are not simple: they must be cultivated and developed. Friendships can even cause problems, so it is important to know how to manage them. So far, I believe I have obtained very healthy friendships, where we have shown mutual vulnerability, and through that I am becoming more comfortable with my energy and attitudes about life here at Notre Dame. Life has many challenges, and one option is to rely on your friends in times of hardship. Friends can be a helpful means of guidance and support if you have developed very healthy relationships. This can often be difficult; people frequently end up in relationships that do not work out, but they do not realize it because they do not notice the signs (“5 Signs You’re in a Toxic Friendship” by Olivia T. Taylor—Moreau Week 4). By evaluating your relationships, you can ensure that they are all healthy and cut out unhealthy ones. With wholly healthy relationships, you will have a strong support system for getting through challenges. Faith can also help give a stable framework to base your life on, so that you do not lose focus on your values or path in life (“The Role of Faith in Our Story” by Fr. Pete McCormick—Moreau Week 3). The support system of your friends can be augmented with faith if you so desire to ensure that https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MlLWTeApqIM https://grottonetwork.com/navigate-life/relationships/signs-of-toxic-friendships/ https://grottonetwork.com/navigate-life/relationships/signs-of-toxic-friendships/ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lcZMeqWWOIs you have a backbone to overcome any obstacles in your way. I personally think I do not need to rely on faith at this point in my life because I have a strong foundation of supportive friends, but faith will always be an option if I need it. Throughout life, we search for the means to thrive and stay happy. I believe that learning and friends are the best ways to achieve happiness and our goals. As we gain knowledge, wisdom, and allies for ourselves and each other, we also develop our mind and spirit, building our own story, similar to how the founders of Notre Dame built their own stories and the story of the school on one another (“Two Notre Dames: Your Holy Cross Education” by Fr. Kevin Grove—Moreau Week 5). The end result is that learning and friends profoundly shape the lives of both us and others in a positive light, bringing about health and happiness and turning the world into a better place. https://notredame.hosted.panopto.com/Panopto/Pages/Viewer.aspx?id=859bc1a8-0d0f-4eb4-a1c1-d0a45c429187