It’s that time of year. The Spring Slump.
Around the middle of the spring semester, school, extracurricular commitments, and general exhaustion consume all college students. The warming air doesn’t wake us up from a winter slumber; it only serves to remind us of the upcoming days of beach, summer, and freedom.
Unfortunately, I am no exception to this rule. With my classes picking up pace in anticipation of summer, I have little time and even less energy for extra curricular activities, including my sorority.
The Spring Slump often affects Greek life, especially when the day-to-day obligations grow overwhelming. Spring at USM is the time of Delta Gamma Anchorsplash, Tri Delta Triple Play, Sigma Chi Derby Days, and other philanthropies, not to mention sisterhood retreats and recruitment workshops.
Though these activities are definitely fun, paired with other spring obligations, they can amount to more than a collegiette like myself can handle. This is when the Spring Slump really takes a hold.
More than inducing additional exhaustion, the Spring Slump can also lead to a negative attitude about these obligations.
My own Spring Slump really set in after a long week of tests and Sigma Chi derby days, as my chapter was facing a long weekend of recruitment workshops.
Our chapter leaders recruited alumni and other speakers to come and pump us up for recruitment, but I found myself fighting off sleep at 8:00 AM Saturday morning and counting down the hours until I could collapse into bed.
However, our wonderful speakers soon shook me out of my exhaustion. They wanted to take a look at recruitment from a different perspective: instead of practicing conversations or working on our skit, we examined our own chapter.
We talked about whether or not our chapter is upholding the values and standards of Delta Gamma. In order to do this, we have to take a good hard look at the values we stand for.
Every sorority was founded on a set of values, but in the rush of philanthropy events, chapter meetings, dues, date parties, swaps, and other activities, it is sometimes easy to forget about these values.
However, we as Greek women must remember that our membership in sororities is not based on these other activities: it is based on our values.
I am extremely grateful for my amazing sisters and for the wonderful speakers we had at our workshop. They pushed me to remember why I am a member of Delta Gamma and why I have dedicated so much of my time to my sorority. They pulled me out of my Spring Slump.
So next time you or one of your sisters seems to be falling victim to the sorority Spring Slump, take a moment to reflect on your values, and you will find motivation to make it through the Spring Slump and have fun doing it!