A few weeks ago, sorority recruitment took place on my campus. It was hot, it was long, and it was so terribly, heartbreakingly, overwhelmingly bittersweet.

This was my first year behind the scenes of recruitment, and I really did enjoy it. I grew closer with my sisters after spending all week with them, and I grew so much more love for my chapter than I already had. However, the week didn't end like I thought it would.

Throughout the week, I developed relationships with multiple girls, and I wanted them to be a part of my chapter more than anything. But it didn't turn out that way. Almost every girl that I spoke to during recruitment ran home to a different chapter (yes, a chapter, not chapters). Naturally, I was slightly discouraged and a little bitter. I started thinking and asked myself endless questions. The worst one was, "What could I have said that would have changed their mind?". I eventually came to the conclusion to stop asking myself this, for two reasons. The first being that it was too late, anyways. The second being that if they went to a different chapter, then my chapter wasn't meant to be their home. When it comes down to it, girls pick their chapter because of that "feeling". Not because of words or reassurances, but simply because of the feeling; the feeling where you just know. You feel at home, you feel comfortable, and you feel like you want to be a part of that sisterhood so badly, even if you've only met a total of ten people throughout the week. There really wasn't anything else I could have said or done that would've made them choose my chapter over theirs. They ended up where they were meant to be, and I shouldn't wish to change things.

So then I started to ask myself, "Would you rather have them run to your chapter with little excitement, or run to their desired chapter with a gigantic smile plastered on their face?" The answer was obvious, but I still felt sad about it.

Thankfully, a few days after recruitment ended, I got coffee with a girl I talked to during recruitment (yes, one that didn't run home to my chapter). By the time the conversation ended, not only was she a new sweet, sweet friend, but I felt peace about every girl that decided to not join my sisterhood. I realized the chapter they went didn't determine the friendship we could have. The potential of a great friendship was just as present as it would have been had they joined my chapter, I just had to take advantage of the opportunity. It really hit me right then and there that Greek letters don't create boundaries in life. They don't set in place restrictions that determine who you can and can't be friends with.

I decided the next time someone asked me how recruitment was, I would tell them that it was bittersweet. It can be so bitter, but it can also be so, so, so sweet. The friendships that result in those outstanding ten minutes of conversation during recruitment are much more valuable than them running to your chapter, if you decide to make it that way.

It's clear that recruitment is horribly bittersweet. But, I think it's also pretty fitting that the sweet comes after the bitter.