I’m not one to toot my own horn, but I have to say that this last year in college has probably been the most fulfilling and exciting year that I have ever had. I joined a sorority (shout out to my KayDee’s), found my best friends who helped me get through my freshman year (whether it was being on time to chapter meeting, crying about a boy with some Cherry Garcia Ben and Jerry’s or even dragging me to that party I didn’t want to go to) and had the time of my life. But the most important thing I did this year was find myself.

Deciding to rush the three sororities on my campus the second week of school was something that I never thought that I would do (and that was almost a cardinal sin for a legacy like myself). My mom is one of those sorority types that you see in the movies, but I’m not. I didn’t think that I would fit in with them, but I decided to go through rush anyway. Cue having to actually toot your own horn. Coming out of that week, I had found some of the most down to earth girls that I had ever met, and finally, I was one of them, or at least beginning to be.

You may know that finding friends is hard, let alone finding your best friends. Being in a sorority gives you not only friends, but sisters, and I had just gained 120 of those. Those new friends wanted to hang out all the time, whether it was walking to class together or piling seven of us in a four person car to make a Starbucks run that ended with a karaoke party to Luke Bryan’s “Sorority Girl" as we drove down Greek row. My days were filled with going to the house where we, as sisters, would sit in the living room and people watch our fellow students from our large front room window that over looked campus. I began falling behind in my classes, I wanted to do everything all the time; I was finally in and I didn’t want to miss anything.

So let’s say that first semester was a test run, and it didn’t go as smoothly as I had hoped, but I still had pretty great friends and sisters who were going to truly be there for me whenever I needed them. When I finally realized that I had to buckle down and get to work, there they were in the library: the almost graduating 5th year senior, the junior who recruited me, the sophomore (and my rush crush) who "Prefed" me, and my best friend from my pledge class. Girls from different majors and years in school there together to not only help me, but also to keep me company until the library closed.

Enter second semester: my head was on straight (or slightly messed up because I had just spent the break in Germany where, on the second night, I had been hit in the face with a firework; long story, no time) and I was ready to get down to business and pass those new classes with flying colors. Except that life always has something else in mind for you, which in my case was mono with some strep for good measure. So here I am, a week into the new semester, dying. My dad came up to school (bless his heart), picked me up, and took me home for a week and a half so that I could get better. When I finally got back to my classes, I got to it and worked my butt off, but still leaving enough time to have fun on the weekends. I was amazed to see that not only did my sisters want me to have a good time, but they also encouraged me to strive for the best in everything I did.

I wouldn't say I had a rough year, because despite all the hardships that I faced, I was blessed with the opportunity to get through it. I was given the tools that I needed when I asked for help, I had amazing friends that pushed me to do and be better, and I experienced some of the best times that I have ever had in my entire life. Just because something starts off rocky, doesn’t mean that it won’t smooth out, because in all honesty, it will make what you are striving for all the more worth it.