Integration One - 


Integration One - 

I believe that I am searching for deep connections with people.
I believe that I forge life-giving relationships by sharing fun experiences as well as through being
vulnerable.
I believe that I grow by pushing myself out of my comfort zone and by trying new things.
I believe that I am responsible for how I treat those with who I may not get along or agree with.
I believe that I pursue truth by turning to my faith and through introspection.
I believe that my community should talk about our differences and learn how to work together
towards a more inclusive future.

Raleigh’s Core Beliefs
Firstly, I believe that I am searching for deep connections with people. Though I want to

have a lot of friends—I am blessed to have a large group of people I hang out with regularly—I
thrive when I have a few very close friends with who I can share everything with. Somehow, I
found my two best friends very quickly when I got here, and they are the two girls I’m closest
with. Now, I’m working on forging deeper relationships with more people to expand my circle of
very close friends. In high school, my closest friend turned out to be extremely toxic, (she
checked nearly every box pointed out by Olivia T. Taylor in her article) so it’s extremely
important for me to form healthy relationships right now.

I believe that I forge life-giving relationships by sharing fun experiences as well as
through being vulnerable. I’ve made so many fun memories with friends over these past two
months. Some of these memories were made on Friday nights out, but more of them were made
in someone’s dorm room or in the student union at Holy Cross. I love making jokes and sharing
funny experiences with friends, but stronger bonds have been made when we share deeper things
about ourselves. When we are not afraid to be vulnerable, like Brené Brown talked about in her
Ted Talk, we can grow both as an individual and in our friendships. It is a constant struggle for
me to open up to people, but I am working on actively being vulnerable and on forming
relationships with people who I feel comfortable with.

I believe that I grow by pushing myself out of my comfort zone and by trying new things.
Like David Brooks said, “Adam 1 is built by building on your strengths. Adam 2 is built by
fighting your weaknesses.” The way I was in high school limited the friends I could get close
with and the fun I could have. With this new start in college, I am being truly and completely
myself, forming a new identity for myself. To do this, I have to push myself to do things that I
might not have done in high school, like going out, talking to guys, being outgoing, and more.
Right now I’m talking to a certain guy and seeing where it goes, which is something I would
have been afraid to do a few years ago. I’m trying to listen to my heart as well as my head,
instead of just letting one or the other take over, which tends to happen to me.

I believe that I am responsible for how I treat those with who I may not get along or agree
with. I’ve always had a hard time hiding my feelings about someone and I don’t like to waste my
time and energy on people who drive me crazy or who drag me down. However, the unique
experience of Gateway pushes a group of us all together for a whole year… So if there are rifts



between people it will be extremely awkward. Especially here, where people have a wide range
of personalities, political beliefs, social beliefs, and morals, it can be hard to treat everyone with
respect. There’s a certain guy who drives nearly everyone crazy because of his words and
actions, but even though I can barely stand to be around him, I need to work on treating him
kindly. I am responsible for my own actions with regard to people who may think or act
differently from me.

I believe that I pursue truth by turning to my faith and through introspection. My faith has
grown while being in college because I now have to make time for listening to a church service
on my own while balancing a busy schedule of studying and friends. I have to keep up the good
habits of prayer and of reading my Bible before bed even when I’m exhausted and going to bed
at three in the morning. I need to continue to work on setting aside time for prayer and for
introspection—sometimes I’m surrounded by people so much that I barely have time to think for
myself and to really process information and experiences. Moreau has been a good opportunity
for me to write about what I believe and to lear about myself. For example, writing the “Where
I’m From” poem allowed me to analyze what experiences and which people have shaped me into
the person I am today. I need to be more dutiful about making time for my faith and for
introspection because as David Fagerberg said, “Faith is a transformed mind, a mind being filled
with the light of God.”

I believe that my community should talk about our differences and learn how to work
together towards a more inclusive future. One of my best friends is a woman of color, so talking
to her and witnessing some of the things she goes through on a daily basis (like implicit biases,
having her experience be invalidated by others, and microaggressions) has taught me a lot. It has
helped me to realize that our society has a lot of work to do before we are all on an equal footing.
People tend to shy away from hard conversations, but we need to have these talks so we can
learn from one another. It hurts my heart to see some of the things my friend goes through, and
I’ve had so many friends in the past who experience similar things because of their gender
orientation or sexual orientation and it always shocks me how insensitive some people can be.
This doesn’t just apply to people here in college—Carla Harris shared her “pearls” of wisdom
that she had learned “after being a woman of color on Wall Street for 34 years,” which provided
her with a wealth of both experiences and of prejudices and struggles. I am working on educating
myself even more and being there for my friends to support them, no matter what. Another part
of this is being aware of my own implicit biases and working to combat them, because we are all
guilty of believing a “single story,” like Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie pointed out.

Works Cited:
(“The Power of Vulnerability” by Brené Brown - Moreau FYE Week One)
(“Should You Live for your Resume or your Eulogy?” - by David Brooks - Moreau FYE Week
Two)
(“Faith Brings Light into a Dark World” - David Fagerberg - Moreau FYE Week Three)
(“5 Signs you’re in a toxic friendship” - Olivia T. Taylor - Moreau FYE Week Four)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X4Qm9cGRub0&list=PLmiPsabET-W_hjesjTZaITh2s1WbM-Kd0&index=2
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MlLWTeApqIM
https://grottonetwork.com/keep-the-faith/belief/faith-brings-light-to-dark-world/?utm_source=fall_2021&utm_medium=class&utm_id=moreau
https://grottonetwork.com/navigate-life/relationships/signs-of-toxic-friendships/


(“2021 Laetare Medalist Address” - Carla Harris - Moreau FYE Week Five)
(“Where I’m From” - George Ella Lyon - Moreau FYE Week Six)
(“Danger of a Single Story” - Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie - Moreau FYE Week Seven)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UjSwjn-SyB4
http://www.georgeellalyon.com/where.html
https://www.ted.com/talks/chimamanda_ngozi_adichie_the_danger_of_a_single_story