Every day I wake up after my 15th alarm has gone off and lay in bed and stare at the ceiling. I put on a large T-shirt, put makeup on my face, and head on my way to class. I smile at people as I walk because you know what they say, "you're always wearing your letters." Be nice to everyone even if they don't hold the door open for you, don't talk back to girls who are being dramatic at a party, smile. Just smile. Make yourself look perfect and happy because that's what being in a sorority is all about.

Recruitment. This is where you see us at our best with our hair and makeup all done. We sing, we laugh, we chant, we smile, and we are always happy with each other because we are perfect. You look at us and think "I want to be her, this is where I want to be." Here's what you need to know - no, we are not perfect, and no, we don't always sing and hold hands, but yes, every single smile in that room is real. And behind every single one of those smiles, there's a story. There's a reason that girl is smiling for her sorority , and there's a reason that girl is standing in heels after 7 hours, chanting at the top of her lungs to convince you that her sisterhood is the best one.

My sisterhood is my life. I say this every day and I say this to every single girl I come across. My sisterhood is my life because without it I wouldn't be half the person that I am today. I'm a smiling sorority girl who loves her sisters and puts a smile on her face every single day despite the internal battles she faces because her sisters do the same for her. What you don't see during recruitment is the time I cried in a staircase after a long day and night and a sister came out and sat with me for hours in the middle of the freezing night. What you don't see during recruitment is the time I completely broke down after an awful phone call and 3 sisters took care of all of my responsibilities as I sat there numb. What you don't see during recruitment are all of the times that a sister has hit her low, and I mean lowest of lows, and 130 sisters lifted her up until she reached her highest of highs.

Behind my "fake" smile is anxiety and depression, my internal battles I fight every day. But also behind that smile is so much unconditional love and appreciation for my sisters that it's hard not to smile. So, no, my smile during recruitment is not fake. I put a smile on my face every single day for every single one of my sisters because they deserve it. My sisters have had my back so many times since I joined my sorority that I feel that I don't have enough time in my lifetime to make it up to them. And the best part of it all is that I don't have to.

So as you're going through recruitment and see hundreds of girls smiling, know that even though they are tired and hungry and probably very stressed, they smile because they want to, not have to. They smile because their sorority and their sisters have given them a reason to smile no matter what problems are present, and they hope they do the same to you.