What is the conversatio of the good life?

Blake Brewer 

What is a good life? For some people, it means being happy, successful, or wealthy. For others, it’s about being kind, loving others, or having faith. Over the past two semesters in my Conversatio classes, I’ve thought about this question more seriously. I’ve read different texts, watched meaningful films, and had deep conversations that made me reflect on what really matters. But what I’ve learned most didn’t just come from books, it came from my own experience. I’ve come to believe that the conversatio of the good life is about learning how to see clearly, love others, and grow through suffering. A good life isn’t perfect, but it’s one where we keep trying to become better people.

‍ ‍ Conversatio means the way of life. It is about living with purpose and committing to change and growth. It means choosing each day to move forward. This helped me realize that living a good life isn’t something you reach once and never think about again, it's something you work on daily. And that process starts with how we see ourselves and the world around us. Plato’s Allegory of the Cave helped me understand this. In the story, people are stuck in a cave, only seeing shadows on the wall. When one person escapes and sees the real world, it’s scary and uncomfortable at first. But eventually, he adjusts and sees what’s true (Plato 240). This made me realize we all have our own caves, things like fear, pride, or being unaware. Living a good life means being brave enough to face the truth, even when it’s uncomfortable.

That kind of clear thinking also comes from faith. I’ve grown up Catholic, so faith has always been part of my life, but this year really challenged me. When I lost my best friend and roommate to suicide, I felt angry, confused, and heartbroken. I was there when he needed me, and I saw him struggle. Even if I didn’t know everything he was going through, I understood part of it. After he passed, I found myself struggling to forgive, to trust God, and to stay disciplined in my beliefs. But then I remembered something Jesus said in the Gospel of Luke. In Luke 6:27-28, Jesus tells us to “love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you” (Luke 6.27–28). That message hit me deeply. Jesus isn’t just saying to be polite he’s saying that love and forgiveness are at the center of a good life. And love is hard. Real love sometimes means forgiving someone who hurt you or choosing to love someone who’s difficult to love. But those are also the moments when we grow the most.

The Bhagavad Gita also helped me understand what it means to live a good life. In the story, Arjuna is a warrior who doesn’t want to go into battle. He’s confused and overwhelmed, kind of like I was at times this year. Krishna tells him that life isn’t just about what we feel it’s about doing what’s right. Krishna says, “You have a right to perform your prescribed duties, but you are not entitled to the fruits of your actions” (Bhagavad Gita 2.47). That changed the way I think about discipline. It’s not just about doing things to get a reward, it's about doing them because they’re the right thing to do. Whether it’s going to class, hitting the gym, or taking a moment to pray even when I don’t want to, it matters. It builds strength. It builds character. And it helps us live the good life one step at a time.

Another big lesson I’ve learned is that the good life isn’t about avoiding pain, it's about what we do with it. I used to think that being strong meant hiding my emotions and pretending I was fine. But after losing my friend, I realized that being strong sometimes means asking for help. I was completely heartbroken. I had to sit with my emotions and talk about them. That process made me grow. It also gave me the push to become an advocate for mental health and suicide prevention. I don’t have all the answers, but I know how important it is to speak up. I know how much it matters to show up for others. In Luke 10, the parable of the Good Samaritan teaches that lesson. A man is beaten and left on the side of the road, and while others pass him by, the Samaritan stops to help (Luke 10.30–37). That’s the kind of love and compassion the good life is about taking risks, crossing boundaries, and caring when it really counts.

Of course, not everyone agrees on what a good life is. Some people think it’s about success, status, or being happy all the time. And I get that those things feel good in the moment. But they don’t last. Happiness comes and goes. Power doesn’t stay forever. What does last is how we treat people. What lasts is the person we become and the impact we leave behind. That’s why I think real success isn’t about being the best, it's about helping others be their best. Real joy comes from trying to live with love, truth, and purpose.

Some people might say that faith, forgiveness, and compassion aren’t enough.

That life is too painful and unfair for those things to really matter. And honestly, life can be really hard. I’ve felt that firsthand. But if we let our pain control us, we lose hope. And without hope, it’s hard to see how life can be good. What I’ve learned both from the texts we studied and from my own story is that hope doesn’t come from ignoring pain. It comes from walking through it, day by day, and trusting that there’s light on the other side. That’s what Plato’s cave, the Gospel of Luke, and the Bhagavad Gita all taught me in their own ways.

So, what is the conversatio of a good life? It’s choosing to see clearly, even when the truth is hard. It’s having the discipline to do what’s right, even when it’s tough. It’s the courage to love and serve others, even when we feel broken. The good life isn’t perfect.

It’s messy, painful, and sometimes confusing. But it’s also meaningful and beautiful because it’s about becoming who we’re meant to be. It’s about standing back up. It’s about showing up for others, just like we hope they’ll show up for us. It’s a journey, and it’s worth taking, one step and one day at a time.

Works Cited

Plato. The Republic.

The Bhagavad Gita. Translated by Eknath Easwaran, Penguin Books, 2007.

The Holy Bible