We’ve all heard the horror stories about Greek life. I was definitely that kid who always said that she would never go Greek because “it’s what everyone does” and I had heard all of the horror stories. I never thought I would go Greek, but then I met the Greeks at April orientation at my small university and I could see that Greek life at this school was very different from anything I had seen before. I signed up for recruitment that afternoon.
Summer goes by and move-in weekend comes. I was both excited and nervous. I had just moved away from home, I was trying to adjust to life at a new school, getting used to living in a new town and now I was about to add a sorority into the mix. Needless to say, I was a little overwhelmed, but it was the best decision I have ever made. and I’m going to tell you why.
My first year of college was not the easiest to say the least. From multiple car accidents, to family deaths, to illness, to friend troubles and more, there was one thing that remained a consistent positive in my life and that was my greek organization. There were some days when I really felt like I had hit my breaking point, like I was ready to just fall apart, that I was already falling apart and didn’t have it in me to get up and keep going and there were my sisters-ready to pick me up, wipe my tears, and give me the encouragement that I desperately needed. My Greek organization was my saving grace in more ways than one.
After I joined, I heard the saying “what you give to your Greek organization, she will give back to you 10x over” and I can say that it is 100% true. I feel fortunate that my Greek organization allows newly initiated members to take positions within the chapter because being able to take a position immediately following my initiation was the most rewarding thing that I could have imagined myself doing. Getting involved in my chapter gave me a positive outlet that I needed in my life. Not to mention that I learned so many valuable skills that I would have never learned in a classroom.
Everyone is going to have a different experience in the Greek community. Greek life varies from chapter to chapter and school to school. Although each organization has different ideals and values that they choose to focus on, we all share a few characteristics. All Greek organizations value friendship, philanthropy, and scholarship. I like to explain it like this- Greek life is like a language. Every Greek speaks the same language, just with different accents.
Joining a Greek organization was one of the best decisions that I ever made, but if it’s not for you, that’s okay! If you got anything out of reading this, I hope that you take away the message to see past the stereotypes. I’ll leave you with a quote that sums up Greek life perfectly.
"From the outside looking in, you can never understand it. From the inside looking out, you can never explain it." ~ Unknown
