When I returned home from the Disney College Program last July, I knew things would be hard. I had been living in a magical dream world for the last six and a half months, so obviously real life just wasn't going to be the same. But I had no idea just how hard things would hit me. School started and I tried to re-adjust back into my old routine and began looking for a new job. But just as my life had changed drastically while I was gone, so had things back at home. I found myself losing friends and crying myself to sleep.
During the second week of school, a friend of mine posted on Facebook about going to sorority recruitment. I had been debating it for a few semesters, but had never actually gone to a recruitment event. I ended up deciding to go. After the first night, I went home feeling unsure if it was really what I wanted. But by the end of the week, I found myself glued to my phone waiting for a phone call or email containing an invite to preference night. I was ecstatic when I received one later that night.
Things did not magically get better overnight. Like most changes, it took time. I made an effort to get to know my new sisters. Being on campus and finally seeing familiar faces made a world of difference. Suddenly, I was not so lonely anymore. Little by little, the nights I spent crying decreased and I began to return to my happy and bubbly self. I started to once again feel like me. By getting involved in something, I felt like things had more purpose again. I had something to do which meant less time sitting at home thinking about how much I missed Disney.
It's hard to take the leap to get involved with something new, especially when your joining a sorority when you are pretty far into your college career. But the cool thing about my sorority is everyone is all over the place in age and class in school. I didn't feel like an outsider coming in during my fourth year of school, and that is so important to me. If I had felt out of place, then I probably wouldn't have stuck around.
The biggest thing that this sisterhood has provided me with is a support system. I needed that more than ever when I came home and I'm so lucky to have found it. Through my highs and lows I know that my sisters have my back. When things are good, I always have someone to cheer me on, and when things are bad, I always have a shoulder to cry on. Tri Sigma was exactly what I needed and I'm so blessed to have found it.
