Sisterhood

Until last year when my roommate rushed a sorority, I always thought that they were like the movies or the stuff you heard on TV.

The kind of club where people make you walk around naked as they write across your body, beat you with paddles and embarrassed you to no end as you pledged, yet, you were forever a sister and loved you were.

When my roommate joined a sorority last year, I realized that for my school, luckily, those things were untrue. While she kept things a secret under oath, they weren't degrading nor scary--they were sacred, meaningful and shared only with sisters.

As I embark on this journey as a sorority sister, I realize how the media plays a large role in developing the thoughts and opinions of those around me.

People will see the letters embroidered on my shirt or bag and make a face or a comment that speaks louder than their voice. The way people envision sisters is not as a sisterhood but as a stupid experience where the dues you pay are for friends and socials--not the badge a sister will wear forever or the money that goes towards scholarships for girls who wouldn't be able to stay at school. They don't know about the women that volunteer to work with the organization after having long graduated so they can better assist those still enrolled in college and those that aren't.

I guess you can't blame people that think this way though. So much of what's heard and seen is based upon truth and happenings at school across the country that don't take pride in their sisterhood and value what it means to be a part of a sorority.

People do get hurt mentally and physically and it's those that initiate that hazing that ruin the reputation for everyone else. It is those people that think sorority membership is something you should have to prove you deserve and these people that are the ones that don't deserve membership in an elite group of women.

I feel incredibly lucky to be a part of a Greek community that takes seriousness in the word "sisterhood" and make sororities a place of comfort, happiness and of course, fun.

While I have just joined and there are still so many girls I have yet to meet or know by name, I love that I can walk into a building and be welcomed with a "hi" or a smile by those that recognize my face or share a similar t-shirt. I love that if I had a problem, I could take it to my new sisters and they would be there to help me--whether they truly know me or not.

It is so nice to know that there are people out there that will forever be a part of my life, no matter what happens and I am so grateful to have learned what being a member of something truly means.

(I promise this isn't turning into a blog about me being in a sorority--its just whats been on my mind 24/7 for the last few weeks)