The buzz of excitement. The sweaty palms and perfected hair. The nervous, yet hopeful smile and the one question on every girl’s mind: “Where will I run?” Ah, recruitment week. The one week of the school year where every girl going through the process is both excited and undeniably exhausted at the same time. The week where you question absolutely everything and find yourself wondering if you are in the Twilight Zone. Welcome – we’ve been waiting 😉
I have been part of Greek life at CNU for four years now, and each semester I see the ebb and flow of relationships, of philanthropies, of finding one’s own niche within the culture. To be frank, if you told me four-and-a-half years ago that I would be in a sorority, I would’ve laughed in your face and said, “Yeah, uh, I have an identity and I don’t pay for friends.” And now, here I am, going through my last recruitment, and seeing the newest classes begin to find their places in each sorority. Greek life at CNU is honestly different. I can say this with absolute certainty (due to friends in Greek life at other schools throughout the country). For one, and let me make this clear, we do not haze. Of course rumors fly around campus saying that you have to have a trust fund to join one sorority, or one sorority only accepts girls with a specific body type and hair color – but those rumors are simply said for the same reason as others – for attention and shock factor. College kids thrive on juicy gossip, and if you can fixate on one specific group then that’s even better; and that’s where Greek life can find itself at many schools…
But as a sister of Gamma Phi Beta, I have been opened to many, MANY different types of personalities and interests. Probably 70 percent of the sorority I wouldn’t have been friends with or even talked to back in high school (ah, the close-minded years) but through my recruitment process, through my time as a sister, I have been exposed to girls who have completely had their lives turned upside down and still wore a smile each day, and girls who spend the majority of their time helping others. While Greek life may honestly not be for everyone, just like basically every other activity in life, opening yourself to the possibility of a new chapter (pun intended) in your life can truly help you grow.
For those going through recruitment this week: first, I wish all of you good luck and to maintain an open mind and heart – remember that you aren’t looking for clone copies of yourself (and this applies to sorority sisters as well) but for a group of girls who can truly help you become who you want to be. Second, relax and be yourself. By attempting to be someone you’re not, you may easily get swept up in, perhaps, the wrong home for you, so let the real you shine! And lastly, do not get your head mixed up with your heart. This is where many girls can find themselves tossing and turning at night – you may find yourself thinking “well, this sorority has the best reputation in this category” or “this sorority can get me my next job” but this truly isn’t an intellectually driven decision, it’s a moment where your gut tells you immediately what is “home” to you. So trust it.
And lastly, I want to make it apparent that I am not just some Greek life cheerleader, or promoting one sorority over another. Honestly, I am by far not the most involved sister, nor do I go around calling every sister my “best friend.” I very much understand that there are multiple factors to one’s college experience, and my sisterhood makes up a part of mine, just as theater also does; but having these experiences has defined me as an individual, opened my mind up to different types of women and given me a meaningful commitment that will last a lifetime.
