After four years of writing opinion (formerly called viewpoint) pieces, I will add my 50th and final contribution to the Observer’s website. I will share some of my motivations for wanting to get involved with The Observer in the first place and things that I have learned along this four year journey. It is my hope that the ideas I’ve communicated will inspire a future writer to start writing.
At the end of senior year of high school, I read “The Diary of a Young Girl” by Anne Frank. Given the nature of the text, it does not have the fantastical, mythical elements that you’d find in an adventure novel. There isn’t a hero’s journey with an epic call to adventure or a descent into the underworld or even a happy ending. Anne Frank used her diary as a way to express her dynamic thoughts as she sorted out what kind of person she was and wanted to be while living as a fugitive. She wanted her voice to make a difference in the world, and she believed journalism was the way she could have done that. The diary ends suddenly. But, this short glimpse into the fascinating mind of a young person shows the capacity of the human spirit and its creativity. Her story inspired me to follow the noble endeavor of journalism and the necessary act of self-expression.
People need an outlet for self-expression. Some write out their thoughts, inspirations and frustrations in a daily journal; others offer those things up in their prayers or other meditative practices. I saw my writing for The Observer in this way: I’m an opinionated person with ideas about how the world ought and ought not to be. I needed an outlet to express myself in a way that is reasonably competent and refined so that I do not find myself digitally shouting into the abyss in a crazed, rage-baiting Twitter thread. I wanted my articles to be argumentative, persuasive and unabashedly me.
Moreover, I am a finance major, so when I’m not honing my ability to use Excel, I’m definitely not writing creative essays or writing in general. And so, The Observer gave me an opportunity to sharpen my critical thinking and writing skills in a self-paced environment. It has been a sandbox for me to practice new styles of writing, new strategies of communication and new ideas.
I realize that my writing experience with The Observer probably will not amount to much in the eyes of a hiring manager reading my resume. But that’s never why I decided to start writing. I do not write for some mercantile reason, to impress or receive clout. I write because I just want to. That was enough motivation to keep going during these four years, even when I became absurdly busy or fatigued from writing. Moreover, it is a genuine shame that there are Notre Dame students who approach every club or extracurricular organization with the sole view of career development. What about human development? How about doing something you love and believe in? How about doing something without any expectation of monetary compensation?
I will conclude by sharing with you a beautiful insight, through which I have rationalized my involvement in journalism. The Sistine Chapel in Vatican City arguably (and likely) has the most impressive, magnificent artwork ever created. It features Michelangelo’s masterpieces, iconic artistic depictions like the Creation of Adam, the Banishment of Adam and Eve and the Final Judgment. The space is also incredibly sacred, serving as the site of the conclave, where the college of cardinals cooperate with the Holy Spirit to elect the new Pope. Despite the sacred activities and artwork inside, the Sistine Chapel’s exterior is remarkably modest and banal. It is unassuming and admittedly outshined by the heaping magnificence of the Basilica of St. Peter or even the Apostolic Apartments nearby it. However, there is something profound about this contrast: it is akin to the human soul.
On the outside, humans are just mundane creatures; there is not anything strikingly remarkable or praiseworthy about us, from the outside. However, on the inside, the human soul is like that very impressive, magnificent and sacred space. Our dreams and passions, virtues and vices, rationality and contradictions are precisely what makes our souls human and amazing. It would be a terrible and impersonal and inhuman world if we were not able to encounter or experience the wonder of another’s soul, but fortunately, we are able. We are able to express ourselves. We are able to share what gives us joy and what gives us anger. We have the full capacity to share ourselves entirely with another. Whether you accept it or not, we are all made in the image and likeness of God and therefore have the wondrous qualities of a soul and the power to share it.
Good things are meant to be shared. And in my case, journalism has been my way to share with the world, generously.
Jonah Tran is a senior at Notre Dame studying finance and classics. He prides himself on sarcasm and never surrendering. You can file complaints to Jonah by email at jtran5@nd.edu.
