Integrity
The Oxford English Dictionary defines integrity, when viewed from a moral
perspective, as soundness of moral principle; character of uncorrupted virtue, especially
in relation to truth and fair dealing; uprightness, honesty, sincerity. This definition of
integrity has been something that people from all walks of life and every generation have
struggled to gain as their label. Everyone wants to be viewed by others as a person of
integrity; however, integrity is a characteristic that is not inborn, but one that must be
learned over time. Someone must strive to be a person of integrity in order to succeed.
Therefore, in the world today, a person of true integrity is a rare commodity. This is the
case because the world and most of the people in it are only concerned with themselves
and how they can accumulate personal monetary wealth. It is rare to find a person that
genuinely cares for others and is not materialistic, someone who has moral principles
which they try to follow. Today’s society is one of an extremely materialistic nature that,
when viewed as a whole, has almost no concern whatsoever for morals and honesty.
Integrity is a characteristic that our society is badly lacking and one that would make the
world a much better place.
In my own life, being a person of integrity has been a goal that I have long
struggled to achieve. From the time that I was just a small child, being a person of moral
uprightness has been one of my long-term goals. For example, as a child, I used to visit
Wal-Mart with my grandmother. We would usually go at least once per week, and just
about every time we went, she would buy me a toy of my choice. Over time, I grew to
expect a new toy with each trip to the store. One time in particular, I had my heart set on
a certain little trinket; I think it was some sort of action figure, and was excited about
getting it. It was a part of a collection of a certain type of figurine and the last one that I
needed to complete the entire set. Being only a child, this was very important to me, and
I had been looking forward to getting this highly sought after toy for the entire week
leading up to our routine weekly trip. My grandmother, however, did not want to buy it
for mw and refused to buy any toy on that trip, suggesting that we eat lunch instead. This
was not exactly what I had had in mind, and I remember being so upset and desperate in
my young mind for that toy that I was thinking about stealing it. Before I stopped
myself, I had carefully but quickly opened the package when my grandmother was not
looking and put the toy in my pocket. I knew that this was the wrong decision the
moment that I had completed the action, but at the time I did not care. I acted as if
nothing had happened, and we soon left the store, in search of a good place to eat lunch.
The entire time during lunch, my conscience was eating away at my insides, reminding
me of my transgression. It got to be so bad that I lost my appetite. After we arrived
home, me with my new toy in tow, I was so ashamed of what I had done that I could not
even play with it. I decided that I would have to make it right; it was the only way to
silence my screaming conscience. When it came time for our next trip to the store, I
made up my mind to take the toy back. When we walked into the store, I made sure that
the toy was in my pocket, and when I got to the toy section, I ever so carefully snuck the
toy out of my pocket and placed back inside its original packaging, which thankfully was
still where I had left it. I felt as if a great weight had been lifted off of my shoulders and I
proudly and triumphantly left the store with my head held high.
This story proves to be an example of the types of struggles that people face every
day when trying to become a person of moral uprightness. I know that in my own life, I
would not be the person that I am today without the faith in God as a Christian. While I
still continue to struggle with being a person of moral uprightness, it was not until I found
faith that I first succeeded in my goal of becoming a person of integrity. Christianity, like
most other religions, centers on having faith in a higher power and living a life worthy of
having the title of Christian. Being a Christian means being viewed by others to be “Like
Christ.” This is impossible to do without having a firmly rooted set of morals to follow.
Morals are a subject of great importance in most every religion. Being a person of any
type of faith is almost impossible without having morals. Having morals makes a person
genuinely good in the sense that having to think about each action before making it to
determine if it is right is usually not necessary. A person of true moral uprightness
always takes the right action. People do make mistakes, but for the most part having
morals means being honest and not evilly deceptive.
Religion and integrity go hand in hand, and religious people are often looked up
to as role models for others. Religious figures are often viewed as being the
quintessential examples of true integrity. Even so, it is not uncommon to see a supposed
“religious” figure fall from grace for earthly pleasures. This shows that while everyone
does make mistakes, this person’s morals and faith were obviously not at the level that
they needed to be. Having morals is one of the most important requirements when trying
to be a person of true integrity.
As today’s world continues to morally decline, the number of leaders with
integrity also dwindles. Politicians are some of the worst when it comes to morals and
integrity. Though they stand behind titles and claim to be many things while
campaigning, they are constantly in the news for morally failing. People with integrity
are a dying breed, yet it is still possible to turn the face of America around to be viewed
once again as a country that follows the morals on which it was founded. Each person
has the opportunity to be a person of integrity and moral uprightness. It is a personal
choice, yet one that each and every person is capable of making. Integrity, while
sometimes difficult to achieve, is easily the most rewarding virtue to have for anyone
who wants to viewed as a good person