In my last post (“How to Get in America: Lie, Cheat and Steal”), my cynicism was pretty clear. It had not been a good week. I was feeling beaten down from a situation where I felt myself being pulled between my ethics and what my superiors wanted me to do.
At the end of my post, I wrote: “So we’ll see who ends up victorious: the ones who are doing what is right, or the ones who are cheating to get ahead.
Unfortunately, it might be the latter because life is not always like the movies where the good guy always wins. Sometimes the dirty, lying, cheating scoundrel is the one who ends up ahead. At least I will hopefully maintain my own dignity through this whole process.”
It may have taken a little while for vindication to come, but I am happy to say that it has arrived, and I have kept my dignity intact.
Standing my moral ground has ended up working out to my benefit.
Last week was rough. I was stressed out; I was unsure about which person’s advice to listen to. I could have easily let my morals be thrown aside to take the easier approach toward the task I had to complete. It would have saved me hours of anxiety.
But I just couldn’t. I would not have been able to take myself seriously if I had given in to the things that people had asked of me. I would have felt guilty and worthless.
So I stood my ground. Basically, that meant that all of last week was a whirlwind. I was insanely busy, and I felt completely alone in a sea of people who were taking the easier, more dishonest way out.
Finally, today, I have found my vindication.
Sorry to be so cryptic, but I can’t talk about the details of what was going on since this could be read by anyone on the internet. But the moral of this whole situation is that we must ALWAYS maintain our ethics and morals.
Even if people who cheat or lie may have it easier in the beginning (or sometimes they may end up getting to the same end result in a simpler way), that is no way to live. At the end of the day, we need to look ourselves in the mirror and be proud of the people we are and the decisions that we have made.
My week last week was absolutely exhausting. But I made it through without letting go of my ethical standards, and here I am now with things working out not only to my benefit, but also in a way that is a better outcome that I had ever envisioned.
There are days like those last week when my cynicism shines through because I feel so beaten down by the world, but I have to remember that good truly triumphs. Sometimes it’s not blatant to the world, but there really are good people and in some way, they will receive what they deserve. In the same way, those who lie and cheat may get ahead, but they will be unable to look at their accomplishments with any pride. They, too, will most likely receive what they deserve.
Even during those times when they don’t receive what they deserve, we must remember that it is up to us whether we can keep our head up high. It is up to us to live a life that we may be proud of. For me, that means sticking to my beliefs and values even when they makes me the odd man out.
Peppermintfrost 