Like many freshman girls in college, I heard about rushing and wanted to give it a try. Initially, I may have wanted it for the wrong reasons because I mainly wanted to see if all the stereotypes you see in the movies are true. Throughout those five crazy days, however, I ultimately learned a few things that I never thought I would.
All those stereotypes aren't true.
At my small school of about 4,000 undergrads give or take, I was halfway expecting to be greeted by stereotypical sorority girls who you see in movies and TV shows (which I mentioned before). To my disbelief, I was met with the exact opposite each day that I was one step further into the recruitment process. Each day I met with genuine and real girls who simply wanted to bring out the best in me. Whether it was talking about the transition of going into college, or about what I want to do in the future; I soon learned that each girl wanted to get to know me for me instead of about how much I could drink in an hour. This was one of the biggest and most amazing shocks of my college career thus far.
Each chapter wholeheartedly believes in its philanthropy.
No matter what chapter you visit on any campus, each one has its own philanthropy that it works to raise money and awareness for. While the social aspect of being part of a chapter can be both comforting and rewarding, it is also refreshing to see how many girls are touched by their chapter's philanthropy and all they can accomplish by working through that. At the end of the day, each chapter and the girls within it want to work harder for their cause and all it has to offer.
Those "gut feelings" everyone talks about are real.
Going through recruitment, everyone kept telling me that when you were meant for a chapter you would just know. At first, I had no idea what they were talking about. Soon before long it came down the preference round, the night before bid day, and I still thought everyone was making things up to make me feel better about choosing which chapter to join. By the end of the night, however, I completely understood what everyone had been saying all along. Even though I met plenty of amazing women throughout my recruitment process, it became clear to me where I belonged without even having an explanation behind it.
Staying open minded is the key to success.
After almost a month of being on campus, I had heard varying rumors and schemas of different chapters and the girls in them. Despite hearing things that I may not have always wanted to hear, I was determined to keep an open mind through recruitment and I am so thankful that I did. If I had listened to what everyone else had to say, I am almost 100% sure that my decision would have been biased against all I had heard. By allowing myself to keep an open mind without any biased thoughts, I was able to make my own decision and make sure that I ended up in the chapter where I belonged.
Sometimes you just have to do what's best for yourself.
Several of my friends offered their inputs into what chapters I had at the top of my list and the ones I had towards the bottom. It's extremely difficult to put yourself ahead of everything your friends have to say, but sometimes it is completely necessary. While I am incredibly happy for my friends and the chapters they joined, I am also happy that I put myself first throughout this process. We all had varying opinions on each chapter and while some of my friends were certain that I fit into one chapter over the other, I was determined to put my thoughts and feelings ahead of what everyone else said and that made all the difference for me.
Home doesn't have to be the place you grew up in.
Officially, I have been a member of a chapter for a couple days. Within these couple days, however, "family" and "home" have taken on a new meaning for me. I go to school 1000 miles away from my "real" home and sometimes it's not always easy to relate to what's going on there. From the moment I received my bid, I knew that I had gained a different type of family. I ran outside and was immediately greeted by people who would ultimately become my family and my sisters within a couple of hours. With that in mind, the chapter house has also become my home. It's a place I know I can venture to if I just need to relax away from my dorm, or if I need to see one of my sisters about something that is going on. I will always have a home, whether I'm where I grew up or I'm at school and that is a beautiful feeling.
