There are many reasons why an individual would want to join Greek life. Maybe they want to get more involved in their campus community. Maybe they’re interested in the academic advantages or networking opportunities. Maybe they’re only in it for the Instagrams. But, above all, there’s one reason that you will hear over and over. It’s so vital to Greek life that there’s an entire day dedicated to it during formal recruitment: sisterhood.
While it sounds nice, sisterhood is difficult to define. I have one younger brother, and while I have female friends outside of Greek life, assigning the word “sister” to someone seemed to me a sign of an incredibly strong and dedicated relationship. On Bid Day, we were introduced to our new sisters, the majority of which were total strangers. How do you define a relationship that hasn’t even begun? Over and over, they reminded us that “Sisters are there for life.” But with the future constantly in motion, could I be certain how these bonds would form and how they would hold against the trials and triumphs of life?
In the worst possible way, I got my answer.
On May 16th, 2017, after 88 years of life and nearly 68 years of marriage, my grandmother passed away. While I was grieving myself, I worried more for my mom and her father, my grandfather. Within a few days, family and friends had flocked to her home, and I soon found myself sitting in a funeral home pew, wishing I could take off my heels, and wondering just how powerful denial really could be.
My dad walked over, breaking me out of my thoughts.
“You okay?”
“This sucks.” I replied, the understatement of the year.
He nods. There’s nothing more to add.
“Who’s that talking to Mom?” I asked, watching this stranger coax a smile from her.
“That’s Andrea.”
Andrea. The name is familiar, ringing of long-winded stories and my parents’ college days, but my brain refuses to co-operate so my dad fills in the blank.
“She’s your Mom’s sorority sister.”
It didn’t matter that they had been out of school for 30 years. It didn’t matter that they were separated by 300 miles. When my mother needed her sister, she was there. She dropped what she was doing and offered her help.
There are few bonds stronger than those between brothers and sisters. How else could you explain every major religion in the world from Christianity to Wicca having references to treating each other as brothers and sisters?
When you refer to someone as your sister or your brother- you are saying that they are family. Not bound by blood, but something much stronger. It’s one thing to love and cherish those you are related to by chance. It’s another to choose to love people who were once complete strangers, but are now individuals you would do anything for. And when you say anything, you really do mean it.
How different would this world be if we treated each other like brothers and sisters? If we recognized our shared values and worked to add more good into this world? While I am honored to call my fellow Thetas my sisters, this bond can extend beyond our letters, beyond our faiths, beyond political parties or basic ideologies. It's not easy, but nothing worth having ever is.
This is why Greek life is so important to me and many others. It’s not just parties and service hours, and someone to hang out with on Friday nights. My sisterhood isn’t like a Snapchat story. I’m building it to endure, more than four years, more than fourteen years, more than forty years. Sure, we may make t shirts for everything, wear too much glitter, and flood our social media feeds while we throw what we know. All the while, we are forging a bond that we can rely on in the future. To an outsider, these facets of Greek life may seem “superficial”, but in this world that seems to be turning upside down day after day, we need reminders that there is still a reason for laughter, a purpose for silliness. Even in our darkest of days, there will be people we love that can bring us a light.
