The Right Way or the Highway

I believe that cheating gets you nowhere in life, no matter what the circumstances are, it’s wrong. I cheated most of my elementary days up to 4th grade. Cheating made me lose friends and respect from others. When I was younger I would cheat at every game we ever played. Tag, capture the flag, basketball, and board games. I couldn’t stand to lose so I either had to be good at everything or cheat. No one can be good at everything, so cheating became a habit. My friends started to notice this trend but wouldn’t confront me on my cheating ways. The cheating continued and was starting to drive my friends away. The longer I did it the more aggravated they got. Despite the many times I was confronted about it I would mastermind lie after lie. “What? You didn’t get me!” “What do you mean I’m out?” “No I’m not cheating.” Soon I lost friend after friend and the cheating snowballed. My friends would say they were busy but I knew they weren’t. I thought cheating more would fix it, because no one likes a loser. I felt I had to win games for people to like me. My parents noticed the trend to and decided to deal with it. We had a long talk about how I cheated a lot. They told me I had to stop if I wanted anyone to like me and this was why my friends didn’t come over anymore. They helped me with the slow long transition. They reminded me that everyone has to lose and when you do, do it respectfully and gracefully. If I did this and stopped cheating losing would become more bearable and my friends would come back. It took a while but I feel that cheating is long behind me. I was never able to fully repair those friendships because of my move across town. Although I wasn’t able to rebuild those friendships I am happy to have moved on and built relationships with kids on my side of town and in my school.

I have also been on the other side of cheating. I watched as my hero Roger Clemens was caught cheating in baseball. He used steroids and is currently being investigated by the government. Despite his claims of never using a banned substance the majority of the public and myself believe he did use steroids. His case is very weak and he seams headed to a guilty verdict. As someone I looked up to it’s disappointing and repulsive. I now know what my friends felt like when they saw me cheat. It made me not want to hear anything about Clemens and my friends not want to see me. Plus it ruined their fun just like Clemens ruined baseball for his fellow players. I am luckier than Clemens because I am now trusted again after working hard to gain the trust of the people around me. Clemens has lost all his credibility not only as a baseball player, but also as a person. For that I have sympathy for Clemens. Not all cheaters are as lucky as I was. Some never can regain the trust and credibility they once had. I don’t think Roger will. The cheaters of the world are ruining competition for others and its bothersome and agitating. Cheating is one of my big pet peeves now. I can’t stand when someone cheats especially blatantly and I know others feel the same. I believe that we should all stop this so we can enjoy our life and do things the right way. You may not win, but if you do something with all your effort, have fun, and do it the right way, there is more happiness for you and the ones around you.