For the past 6 months, I have been in a relationship with my girlfriend, Taylor. I immediately learned from her that she wasn’t as athletic as me, and she seemed to have other interests and things that took her attention, After getting to know Taylor, I learned that she was a member of the Sigma Sigma Sigma Sorority.

Now let me disclaim something here, I never have nor wanted to join a sorority, it’s just not my thing. I’m a rugby player, I couldn’t have told you the first thing about a sorority.

After spending these past 6 months with her, I would like to share with you what it’s been like to be in a relationship with a “sorority girl”.

Confusion. Lots of confusion. Coming in to this, I thought I wasn’t going to be able to understand or follow any of the conversations she had with me about anything Sigma related. I didn’t know what recruitment was, or pref night, or bid day. Hell, I thought “bumping” in groups was a dance. After many long nights of taking it slow (very very slow), I started to connect the dots. I’m still learning, believe me, there are plenty of things I still don’t understand; but I went from understanding zero percent of what she said, to about 80 percent, which is a big accomplishment in my book.

I learned that there is a lot of tedious rituals and bylaws that go into being in a sorority, things I didn’t realize before. They have to reach numerous goals and quotas, in a specific fashion and in a timely manner. Looking at the all the things they have to accomplish, I don’t know how they do it. There is a lot of effort that those girls put in to maintain their status.

I learned that things aren’t always what they seem to be. Coming into college, I always assumed that the ideal “sorority girl” was someone focused solely on their image, what frat parties were taking place on campus, and materialistic things. After getting to know the cause and the philanthropic events that these members strive to be a part of, I have discovered a newfound respect.

There is a lot that goes in to maintain a chapter, and through hard work and dedication on the members end, is how it gets done. I now look as sorority members in a new light, and appreciate their hard work as well as what they do to set an example for many girls to follow.