It's summer time and for all the high school seniors out there it means three months of anxiety and fear about what the future holds. You are frantically buying shower curtains, comforters, and organizers; wondering what this whole college thing is about. If you are anything like me, you are diligently gathering reconnaissance on everything from the best professors to the best places to eat in your new city. One thing that I stumbled upon that I will never forget was Panhellenic recruitment. On the Student Life page, I saw a tab with a picture of giddy smiling girls asking if I wanted to be a part of something greater than myself and of course I clicked it. The first thing I saw was a group of powerful looking women wearing shirts with colorful letters and I must admit it was terrifying. I wasn't some confident glamazon like these girls. I was just a freshman that didn't have a clue about where I would fit. None of my immediate family was Greek. I didn't have an old pin from my grandmother or letters from my mom. I soon realized that this was a decision I would have to make all on my own.
Looking back there are a few things that I would tell the frantic me considering filling out the application to go through the recruitment process. One of them is that there is a home for everyone. I am not a girl that constantly wears Lilly dresses or even wears makeup every day and guess what? I have found a sorority home that loves me for that and fosters my individuality. Frankly they give me the confidence to break the mold more than stay within it. Something I would tell my absolutely panicked self is how you don't have to sacrifice anything about college when you join a sorority. Sure there is the occasional week where you have to do one or two more things than you would otherwise but that quickly becomes a small price for everything else you will gain in the process. Being the ridiculously involved high school student that I was, I wanted to find places to plug myself in as quickly as possible. As soon as I joined I figured out that I had all these people I could casually message and ask about clubs and boards to see if they would be right for me. Then when I did join them I immediately had familiar faces waiting to greet me as I got started. Having these connections shaped that student that I have become.
This all being said I guess the overreaching theme that I would tell anyone considering recruitment is GO FOR IT. You, quite literally, have nothing to lose. Sure it is a little terrifying at first but you immediately start making connections even within your little recruitment group. Sure you may not all end up together but every person that you can grow with and learn from is worth the scary process. Joining sorority is not the end of the line where your life is determined and your college experience set in stone. In reality, it is the start of your first steps in your new independent college life. If I have learned anything from this bond it is that the women that surround you are not a norm to be adhered to. They are a support that holds you up and helps you stand out as the individual you are. What could be better?
