When you join a sorority, you're told that you are a part of something so much larger than yourself, but what does that mean?

Last week, Taylor Bufkin wrote, "You Never Know When You Might Meet A Sister." She met a sister while she was doing some personal philanthropy work for her sorority. I thought that was really neat, but I didn't think too much about it until this past weekend. 

My sorority held a conference called College Weekend for Pi Beta Phis and I was the delegate from my chapter. I went to St. Louis not knowing any other Pi Phis in attendance. We, typically, just think of our sorority sisters or fraternity brothers from our chapter, even though we know there are so many more around the world. We don't think about them because we don't have a personal connection with them. 

I met Pi Phis from UGA, UCLA, and MIT. I made lifelong friendships with girls from Ole Miss and Southern Miss. It's amazing who you get to know when you put rivalries aside. The number of sisters I had surrounding me who were so unique, but Pi Phis none the less, truly amazed me. 

The connections you have with complete strangers, because of your letters, is unreal. Everyone at the conference had their own beliefs, ideas and ways of life, but at the end of the day, we were all Pi Phis. We were all there for the same reason. We shared a bond. All of our uniqueness that we brought to the conference is what made it special and helped us grow. 

When joining a sorority or fraternity, it's not about which one is exactly like you. It's about which organization your uniqueness would most fit into. Each person brings something different to their chapter, something that is necessary for the chapter to grow. Don't stress because everyone in the chapter you're thinking about joining, or even the chapter you're in, doesn't like everything you do. That's just why they need you there.

It's not just about just the girls in your chapter, either. You have thousands of alumni and active members around the world, and they are all there to support the same goals as you. You all work together to make your organization what it is. It really is an incredible experience being a part of something so much larger than just your self.