Commentary: Integrity First Published Aug. 4, 2010 By Chaplain (Capt.) Victor Pagan 386th Air Expeditionary Wing SOUTHWEST ASIA -- "Oops!" Not a very military word, but an expression we use daily. You made a mistake and - oops! - there goes the expression. Don't miss that sound; it is the call to integrity. What you do after you make a mistake will define who you are. Make no mistake about it, your true character is found the moment things don't go your way. You have to do more. More calls, more pallets, more counseling and briefings. The margin of error has decreased, so you are bound to commit mistakes, honest and some not so much. Whatever it takes to get the job done, right? Not so fast. You have to do whatever it takes to get the job right. When a mistake is made, make your very next move right. When you do that, you are now placing integrity first. Many around you will recognize how seriously you take your job. We can see the extra time you put on your project. "You are sharp," people will say; or, "You are well organized." Of course, you do take your job seriously. But with integrity, many will know you for how seriously you take your family, your work, your character. By now you know well that integrity is not attached to rank. Like the batteries for toys we give our kids on Christmas, integrity may not be included. You have to get them separately. Integrity is not automatically added with experience, either. You don't have more, as in the years added to your age, simply with the passing of time. You choose integrity; it won't come to you. Where can you get it? Well, it is not so much a place, like a church or an office or a school. You get integrity when you have an "oops" moment. It happens when you make a mistake and you choose to do the right thing in response. Follow your faith. Remember the core value, honor the morals taught to you and your brothers and sisters when you lived at home. If it helps, say, "Oops: Integrity first."