This is one of my biggest regrets. I wish that I had never done it, but I did. So I can only hope that by sharing my story others will learn from my mistake.

You will always get caught, I can say this from experience. I am not a bad kid; in general I get my work done, I treat others with respect and I am always willing to learn. As a junior I was really struggling in my AP Lit class, and as I sat down one night to write yet another essay after a long night of soccer practice I looked up the short story online. I can still remember the story, "The Hammon and the Beans," and after looking up the story online I found a essay. The perfect essay, right in front of me. It had everything I needed, a perfect thesis, perfect topic sentences and the perfect pieces of text.  So in a moment of weakness I saw the opportunity and I took it. I took the thesis, topic sentence, and text references thinking it was harmless. After bringing it into class I noticed that the person next to me had taken the ENTIRE essay, word for word. At that moment I knew I was screwed. I confessed to my parents about the guilt that I felt. The next day the uncomfortable conversation occurred that I knew was going to happen. When Mrs. Whitcher pulled me and the other student into the hall I immediately confessed, while the other student denied that it had happened. Luckily I had told my parents previously about my overwhelming guilt, so I did not get in as much trouble with them. But that moment of weakness lead to 5 conduct points, a zero in my grades, an intense conversation with the principle and hearing many people say "I am very disappointed with you," which was the worst of them all. I messed up, so I did what any honest person would do. I told the truth. And because I told the truth I was able to earn back my teacher and principals trust.  The 6 sentences I had used were plagiarism. It was not my work. It was not me. And I paid the price. It is a good thing I got in trouble when I did, because if I had done the same thing in college, that would have caused me to be expelled. I made a mistake, as many people do, but I was able to learn from it. I hope that other students are able to learn from my mistake.