My whole life, I wanted to join a sorority because who wouldn’t want a sisterhood of friends that go to formals and retreats and have meetings, fundraisers, and so many other activities? I grew up on the women of my family doing their chants for whatever sorority they had been in and fondly recognizing that their happiest memories of college were with their Greek life. So I decided I wanted to do sorority recruitment when I came to Belmont. I was very excited because I imagined it would be a smooth process and that I would come out of it with a whole posse of new friends and ready to take on the Greek life world. But it was a learning experience more than it was a smooth experience.
The first night of recruitment, I had great experiences with each sorority. I had a good idea of which two I connected with most, though. However, upon arriving back the next day, I was only called back to two of the four, one of them being the one I didn’t see myself in. I was taken aback because the other two I loved didn’t invite me back. People kept telling me to “trust the process.” But it was hard for me to understand why certain things were happening.
That day, as I went to the two chapters I was invited back to, my decision became very clear of which sorority I wanted and felt comfortable in. It was easy for me to open up around them and have meaningful conversations. The other one was nice, but I just simply didn’t feel at home there. They both invited me back for Preference Night and my decision became even more clear of what I wanted to do. I just felt so confident in which sorority I wanted. But it was out of my hands.
The next day was Bid Day, the day where we found out which sorority we got. I was so nervous because I would either be extremely happy or pretty disappointed. I was filled with so many nerves and so much anxiety as I, along with hundreds of girls, waited to see my bid. The moment I opened it felt like slow motion. Girls around me were screaming with joy and I stood there frozen, purely expecting one thing and getting the opposite. Tears filled my eyes as I wondered what I could’ve done differently. I wanted that one sorority so badly and I ended up in the one I didn’t feel happy in. Of course, the girls in the sorority are amazing women, but I just didn’t feel at home there.
The entire day, I was holding in tears and fighting to fake some sort of happiness, but my heart just ached. I just kept wondering why it had happened this way and what I could have changed or done differently to receive the outcome I had wanted.
But after talking to many other girls and also to God, I realized that sorority recruitment has nothing to do with my value or my worth. It was a learning experience and I learned to trust in God’s plan, not mine. Though I am dropping my sorority (just for the sole purpose that I didn’t feel at home there) and rushing again next year, I will not let this process define me or who I am. It will all work out for the best.
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