Opportunism - Getting Out of a Pickle

In 2007, my parents bought us concert tickets to see the double-platinum selling band The Fray at The Lawn at White River State Park in Indianapolis, Indiana on June 19. Coincidentally, my little league baseball team, the Georgia Bulldogs, was also very successful, and on the date of the concert, we were scheduled to play in a final four game in the playoffs. If we were to win this game, we would make it into the championship game. As we had these concert tickets for a few months before the concert, my parents left the decision whether to go to the game or the concert up to me. This was a true dilemma for a seventh grader to make: see one of the most popular bands of the time or help your team make it to a championship. Moreover, this is a decision that tempts opportunistic ideals—taking advantage of one's circumstances—to dominate a decision that may be less ideal in the moment but more ideal in the end.

After short deliberation, I chose to play in the game for several reasons. First, I believed that I put a lot of hard work into the rest of the baseball season, so I did not want to cheat myself by putting in less work in a more critical moment in the season. Second, I believed that the rest of my team also put a lot of hard work into the season. It would not have been fair for me to take a night off when the rest of the team would be playing for a championship. Third, I wanted to help my team in any way that I could to make it that championship game. The smallest play such as a fly ball to center field, my position at the time, or the potential of having a great hit could affect an entire game. Putting people other than myself in those positions would not be fair to those people. Finally, I would not have felt deserving enough to play in the championship game if the team made it without any of my contributions. A good analogy for this would be if somebody completed all of the homework in a class and somebody did not complete all of the homework in a class, but both people received an equal grade. An overall theme of the classic saying, "hard work will always pay off in the end," can be found in these decisions.

While, "hard work will always pay off in the end," summarizes my decisions well, I want to narrow this idea down into a category that encapsulates not only moral themes but also decision making. The reasons for why I chose to play in the game instead of going to a concert can truly be summarized by one's personal, ethical decision-making. Deciding to go to a concert and blow off one of the most important games of the season was completely against my personal, ethical standards. Had I missed the game and gone to the concert, I would have violated the morals by which I make most decisions. Furthermore, if my team had made it to the championship game without my help, this would have only amplified the guilt I would feel from violating these standards. You could say that each member of the team had an unwritten contract with the other members to put in their share of time. By going to the concert, I would be in violation of this unwritten contract and not fulfill my end of the bargain. The costs of breaching this contract, violating my own ethical codes and feeling guilt clearly outweighed the benefits of seeing The Fray. Overall, my personal, ethical decision-making was the overall category of each of my decisions.

To end on a lighter note, and for what interest it may bear to readers, my team did make it to the championship game that night. Our team played brilliantly, and in one of the last innings, I hit a ball to the fence 250 feet away from where I stood at home plate resulting in a scoring run that helped to seal our victory. If it had not been for the ethical decision I had made, I would have certainly not had the opportunity to contribute to my team that night and fulfill my end of our team's unwritten contract.


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