Family. Defined by Merriam-Webster as a group of people who are related to each other or a group of related people, including people who lived in the past. This is the technical definition of family. However, if you asked a variety of people what they thought the definition of family is, you would get a different answer every single time. For some, family has negative connotations, and for others family is the most positive aspect of their lives. Some people have one family and others have multiple. I have been lucky enough to call myself one of those who has multiple families, including the family that I have found within my sorority.

When I first came to college, I was a bit on the antisocial side. I have always been more of an introvert and I quickly dug myself into a hole of loneliness. I sat in my room too often and was easily bored. My roommate asked me to rush to join a sorority and I not so politely declined. Eventually though, I decided that I didn’t want to be lonely anymore. I wanted to become a part of something that would help me make friends. So I decided to go ahead and rush. Little did I know that I would not only make friends, I would find a family.

As I went through rush, I attempted to keep an open mind. This wasn’t something I was originally interested in, but I wanted to at least give it a shot. I quickly lost interest as the first two houses I visited were obviously not for me. The members were nice enough, but they weren’t people who I felt like I would be able to be myself around. I went to the third house with the mindset that I was not going to be joining a sorority. I had decided that sorority life just wasn’t for me. Yet when I took my first step inside of the house that I now call home, I knew that this was the place for me.

The girls welcomed me with open arms. It was effortless to slip into a conversation with any of them. It felt like I’d known them my whole life. I was a little shy at first, but it was incredibly easy to open up around these girls and be myself. I was smiling and laughing more than I had since I’d began college. The uneasiness that I’d been feeling being at college washed away the longer I talked to everyone there and when the end of the night came I found myself not wanting to leave.

On the last night of rush I was invited back to the house that I felt most at home. The excitement and comfort began to build just thinking that this group of girls liked me enough to invite me back. When I left that night, I wasn’t nervous at all. I never once thought that these girls didn’t want me to join them. I somehow knew that when I woke up in the morning a bid would be waiting for me. And when I received that bid the next day, I happily accepted it and ran into the arms of thirty other girls that I could finally call my sisters.

That day I got to run to my forever home, turned out to be the best day of my life and ever since then my life has only gotten better. The girls in my sisterhood have been there to wipe all my tears, they help me through messy breakups, they have picked me up off of the ground (literally and figuratively,) they have stolen my clothes and let me borrow theirs, they have cleaned my puke sheets and ran me baths when I wasn’t feeling well, they have given me the tough love that I needed at times, and they have always been there in my time of need. Not only have they shared in my excitement, but have also supported me wholeheartedly. Within my sorority I have found the best of friends and the most supportive family that I have ever had the opportunity to be a part of.

Being in a sorority doesn’t mean I’ve ‘bought my friends.' Being in a sorority doesn’t mean that I’m ditzy or that I party all of the time. Being in a sorority doesn’t mean that I’m a basic bitch with no respect for herself. Being in a sorority means being a part of something bigger than myself. Being in a sorority means gaining leadership skills and developing a sense of self. Being in a sorority means growing as a person and learning to depend on those around you and not shouldering all of the responsibility. Being in a sorority means to love each other even when you hate each other. Being in a sorority means having the opportunity to help those in need and to have fun doing so. I’ve never had as many opportunities as I have had within my sisterhood. I’ve never felt more loved. I’ve never felt more at home.

Being in a sorority has made me a much better person than the person that I used to be. I am still flawed and I still have room to grow. I still struggle with myself and the person that I am. But I am proud of how far I have come. I am proud that I have been able to help so many people through my sorority. I am proud of each one of my sisters for all of their accomplishments. I am proud to call these wonderful girls my family. I am proud to be a sorority girl. You don’t have to be related by blood to be a family, you just have to be related by heart.