Why Is It Important To Have Integrity

My parents as i'm sure most do taught me that integrity should be something you always strive to achieve. For the longest time I never really knew how important integrity was until I actually had to prove to myself I had it. I have always known the general steps to have integrity, be honest, stand up for what is right, and just be a good person. It took till freshman year to finally understand what it meant to really have integrity and to show it.

I was on the Washington D.C. trip that most freshman take and I was very excited because almost all of my friends were going to be there. The trip started out great we had a great time learning about American history and we had an even better time being goofy. Once the day was over we would get in

so I just forgot about it and moved on.

On the the second day of being there we got up early and hopped on the bus. I sat next to my friends and we started chatting about all the fun stuff we did once the chaperons told us to go to our separate rooms. Once my friends started talking about what they did they talked about how they messed with that kid all night locking him into the bathroom, hitting him with pillows, pushing him of the bed and just a whole bunch of mean things that they said eventually made him cry. When they said this it made me very angry with them and it made my stomach knot up. My parents had always said that I should stand up for people who are being bullied and how important it was to have integrity and not let people be mean to other people for no reason. Even though I knew it was wrong I let it slide because I thought my friends wouldn't like me if I told them to stop. The harassment went on the rest of the day and it got to me more and more and I knew his trip was being

This is when I realized that if my friends were going to do this to someone then they were not going to be my friends. I told them to leave him alone and that I thought that it was cruel treatment to someone who only came to have fun. I said how what they had been doing to this kid is wrong and you should imagine what it would be like to be in his shoes. I told the kid who was bullied to come to my room and that he can hang out with my friends in my room and I for the rest of the trip. Even though my friends may have thought it was a lame thing to do I knew I was doing the right thing and for the remainder of the trip I had a great time knowing I had stood up for what I believed was right and that even though my friends were mean it didn't mean I had to be. When the trip was over and we went my friends that had been doing the bullying came up to us and they said they were sorry for messing with him so much and that they would like to make it up. I felt good knowing that me standing up for that kid changed his entire trip and it also changed the opinion of the people responsible. I finally knew what it meant to have integrity and to stand up for what is right even if it meant going against your