Take 5: 20th April 2015 by Ms Kymn Yee

Good morning fellow GESSians

The theme for this term’s take 5 is on integrity and therefore today’s take 5 will be centred on just that.

Oxford dictionary defines the word integrity as ‘The quality of being honest and having strong moral principles’.

What is the meaning of being honest? It is more than just telling the truth.

Let me tell you a story. It’s called George Washington and the Cherry Tree.

George Washington was the first president of the United States. When he was 6 years old, his father gave him a special gift. No, it was not an ipad. His special gift was a hatchet. His dad explained that a hatchet is not a toy and told him to be very careful. But George Washington was excited. He immediately began using his small hatchet to cut small plants and trees.

One day, George Washington got so carried away that he ended up cutting his father’s favourite tree. When his father saw his cherry tree on the ground, he seethed with anger and demanded to know who had chopped his favourite tree to the ground. It was a really tough question to answer and George was staggered by it. He took a moment and took a deep breathe.

So, what do you think George did? To lie or not to lie?

George replied “I cannot tell a lie, father, you know I cannot tell a lie! I did cut it with my little hatchet.” The anger died out of his father’s face and he took the boy tenderly in his arms and said to his son “My son, that you should not be afraid to tell the truth is more to me than a thousand trees!”

George Washington made a mistake. He cut down his father’s favourite tree. But everyone makes mistakes. He did not make a second mistake. He told the truth.
How does this story apply to us? Sometimes, even though we know that in telling the truth, we may have bear a serious consequence, but the it is far better to be truthful as people are more willing to forgive as oppose to telling a lie and being found out eventually. By telling the truth, you will also gain respect from the people around you. Your word can be trusted.

I go back again to the meaning of the word integrity – ‘The quality of being honest and having strong moral principles’.

What does having moral principles mean? Moral principle is defined as ‘the principles of right and wrong that are accepted by an individual or a social group’. It’s what you think, do or say when no one is looking. It is what you do, what you think when you are faced with temptation. So I’m going to ask you. When you are taking a test or exam and you see that your notes are close by, what do you think about? What do you do? When you see your friend’s phone lying on the floor or the table and there’s no one around, what do you think about? What do you do? When you come to a cross road, which path will you take? The easier one or the difficult one that is made with principles and builds character? Moral integrity is about sticking to your beliefs. It is about not compromising your beliefs no matter how ‘rewarding’ it may seem to be.

So in summary, integrity is following your conscience to stand up for what is right and keeping your word to it and being morally consistent about it. That to me is integrity. What about you? What does integrity mean to you? Will path will you choose when faced with one?