As fall sorority recruitment is coming to an end, I have been doing a lot of reflecting on what it means to be a part of a Greek organization. Now let me tell you, I never would have imagined that I would have joined a sorority when I came to college. It definitely was not in the plan. I bought into the typical stereotype of sororities and fraternities as just groups of college students that liked to party. However, I have come to see that these organizations actually mean so much more and are not defined by these stereotypes.

I decided to rush as a freshman because I had heard it was a great way to meet a lot of new people on campus and all my friends were going to do it as well. I told myself that I could always drop out of recruitment before I had to really commit. Of course this plan totally fell apart after the first night. It was obvious that each organization took the idea of sisterhood to heart. During recruitment I saw how close each of the girls in their respective sororities were with each other and I realized that I wanted that too.

I felt that in my college experience so far that there was something lacking. I no longer had the same support system that I had in high school. My friends and I were spread so far apart that sometimes I felt so alone. I quickly saw that I had the chance to form a new support system with one of the chapters on my campus. This is how I eventually found my way into Phi Mu Fraternity. I finally found a place that I could call home on campus.

At first being in Phi Mu was a little overwhelming. There were all these new expectations thrust upon me that I had to navigate, but I was never alone. One thing that really made me love Phi Mu that much more were the people that I formed a kind of family with (aka the Pham). My big and grandbig (and later on my twittle, little, and my twittle’s little) showed me what sisterhood really looks like.

From our obsession with Mexican food and our mutual love of the BBC’s six hour version of “Pride and Prejudice,” to our Saturday hiking trips and our overall shambliness as we try to make it through the daily struggles of being college students, I know that these girls will always have my back. They will be there for me through the thick and thin and the ups and downs of life. I have witnessed this kind of love in all of my sisters in Phi Mu, as well as in many of the other Greek organizations here at Transylvania University.

I can say without a doubt that joining Phi Mu has been one of the best decisions I have ever made because I have found a group of women who value the same things that I do. I have found a group of women who are loving, honorable, and just. The spirit of our sisterhood becomes more present and important in my life as I grow older. I can see how much I have come to rely on my sisters and how much I have grown in this chapter. It is now that I can honestly say that Phi Mu truly feels like home to me.