Coming into college, I rushed, because that was what you are expected to do when you come to TCU. I knew that my future college was big on Greek life, but I never really knew exactly what a sorority was. No one in my family was ever in a sorority and I didn’t have that many older girl friends that could answer the hundreds of questions I had. So, going into recruitment, I was completely clueless of what was to come. Any knowledge I had about sororities came from the movie “House Bunny”. After watching that movie, the only thing I knew for certain was that “Zeta Alpha Zeta” was the house that all the freaks were in and that I definitely didn’t want to join that one.
I found out that Zeta Alpha Zeta doesn’t exist. So, naturally, I chose the next best thing and accepted a bid from Zeta Tau Alpha coming into my freshman year.
It took all but five minutes to realize that the way Zetas were depicted in "House Bunny" was far from accurate. On bid day, I found myself surrounded by 60 of the most beautiful strangers I had ever seen in my life. These girls were nice, funny, smart, and all-around awesome people. I loved Bid Day. I was picked up by the girl that would end up being my big, I got the first of many sorority t-shirts, and I was taken to a gorgeous house to eat dinner and meet all of the girls that were part of my pledge class. It was as if in a matter of seconds after opening my bid card I instantly had 60 new best friends.The whole thing was incredibly exciting and overwhelming all at the same time.
The weeks to come were filled with chaos, sleepiness, and way too many things to do. On top of starting my first semester as a college student, the social aspect of TCU took me by storm. There were endless parties, people to meet, drinks to drink, and things to learn. Not just academic things, but college things. I learned what a darty is, I learned the proper way to play beer pong, and I learned what it means to be truly exhausted. And that's exactly what I was all the time, EXHAUSTED.
In addition to the social scene and academic side of college, I was going through the initiation process for Zeta. While I’m not going to go into the details of this, I am going to say that there were A LOT of meetings. There were so many things that I was expected to learn about the organization I was joining. After all the meetings and rituals, it seemed as though I signed my life over to this sorority and I couldn’t have been more excited. Everything that I had spent so much time learning about had finally paid off.
I was relieved that the stress that came with being an incoming freshman was finally starting to simmer down. Right when I thought I was getting a grasp of the whole college thing, I completely lost it. The overwhelming lifestyle that I was living eventually got the best of me and everything began to change. I stopped caring about school, about my sorority, and about myself. Depression set in. I'm not going to go into details about this either, but lets just say that it was a definite low point in my life.
The friendships that I had made through my sorority were no longer a priority to me and I completely let those friendships go. I stopped attending mandatory sorority meetings and I lost all desire to go to Zeta social events. Over all, I changed as a person, and no longer felt as though I fit in with the girls that I was initiated with months before. The “second family” that so many sorority girls raved about never seemed like reality to me, and I take complete responsibility for that. Instead of leaning on the friends I made in my sorority, I pulled away. After a lot of contemplation on the matter, I decided to drop my sorority halfway through my sophomore year. It's safe for me to say that this is one of the better decisions I have made.
After my freshman year, I realized that there were so many different aspects of my life that had overwhelmed me. I was thrown into this world that came with so much responsibility and I wasn't able handle all the time-consuming aspects of a sorority on top of a college lifestyle. I didn’t know how to balance all of the sorority meetings and events with classes, homework, friends, family, and my faith. It simply became too much for me to handle and I cracked under the pressure.
I realize that Greek life is huge at TCU and it can be an extremely positive thing for some people; but I find pride in my independence from this system that controls so many college student's experiences.
I know some girls that didn’t get a bid at the end of Recruitment and completely let that fact alter their college years. These four years are meant to be the best four years of our lives! We are supposed to enjoy them and make life long friends and memories to go along with those friends! Greek life is only one of the many ways you can spend your college years. Joining a sorority can be an awesome experience, but I am living proof that you can have a great time in college without being involved in Greek life. I can honestly say that I am happier now than I ever was when I was active in a sorority.
Although I'm happy that I'm no longer a part of Greek life, I don’t regret rushing Zeta. The sorority definitely wasn’t the source of my depression. In fact, being a Zeta made me incredibly happy, and I enjoyed every minute of it. During the year and a half that I was in that sorority I learned more than I could have ever expected. I made a lot of friends, and I definitely enjoyed the time I spent as a Zeta.
The hardest part for me wasn’t making the decision to drop, because I knew that it was the best choice for me. The hardest part was overcoming the idea of not being in a sorority at a school that focuses so much on Greek life. A lot of the time, the first thing you are asked when you meet someone at TCU is “what sorority are you in?" I was scared of what people would think when I said I wasn’t in one. I was scared of what my friends would think, and what the sorority as a whole would think. I was scared to answer people's questions about why I dropped. I was ultimately scared to lose the title of being a Zeta.
To all the incoming freshman that have decided against recruitment: don’t be afraid of how other people are going to react to you not being in a sorority. After dropping, I quickly realized that TCU is full of awesome people that will accept you regardless of what you are involved in, or how you got there. Your college years are going to be incredible no matter what! If the whole sorority thing isn’t for you, that's okay! Deciding to not join a sorority doesn’t mean you are going to miss out on a college experience. It simply means that your experience is going to be different; then again, isn’t everyone's?
Consider these next four years your time to be yourself and shine as the person you are. If that's not a sorority girl, then embrace the fact that you are going to be a GDI. Lord knows we need more of those in this world and on this campus. Enjoy the time you have here at TCU. Meet new people, take unexpected opportunities, make countless memories, and focus on the important things!
