Pledging at Abilene Christian University is one of the best experiences anyone can have at ACU.

Not only do you get to have fun, but you also get to connect people you may not have known before on a deep emotional level. Pledging involves not only a time commitment but a further commitment to sharing a bond with your pledge sisters and current members. Although pledging is a stressful time, in the end, you get to be a part of a group that loves and cares for you.

Here are some seven reasons to pledge at ACU:

1. The rushes before pledging starts are amazing.

These clubs have taken time out of their busy schedules to put on basically giant parties so you can meet them. They have great food and people for days to talk to. The girls are always so sweet and love to get to know you. The only downside to rushing is it ends after three weeks (and I guess choosing the right club...).

2. You get to be with a group of sisters who will be with you for the rest of your life.

On "Call Night" whenever you get told to go to certain locations to meet your future club, it's amazing to see all the girls already there and know you'll be with them for the rest of your life. Through the bond of pledging, you become closer to people than you ever thought possible. Everyone comes together for anything and everything, little and small. Something they always say as the pledging process occurs is that these girls will be there when you get married, have kids, and all the other moments of your life. Becoming a part of a social club means becoming a part of a family like no other.

3. You now have a new family.

Speaking of family, not only do you have a pledge class that knows exactly what you're going through, but you have generations of women before you that have also been through the whole process. They give you a big and then you become a part of a long line of generations in your family. I've been blessed to have the most amazing big, grandbig, and great grandbig who I all know love me very much and would do just about anything for me. You now have a bond that ties you to these people forever.

4. You get to wear these super amazing outfits every Monday through Thursday from 8 A.M. to 5 P.M.

In case you don't know what I'm referring to here's a picture:

While every club is different, each one has their own variation of the skirts and button-down top their pledges have to wear. As the Flames of GATA, we always have red painted fingers and toes as well as red lipstick (don't forget your pledge pin!). Just as every club has a dress code, we also have binders that we protect with our lives because we value our sanity as well as being able to breathe.

5. Each club is different.

Not everyone fits a cookie-cutter mold of what people would expect of a girl in a social club. ACU is lucky enough to have six different girls and boys clubs so that everyone can join the club they feel the most comfortable in.

6. The pledging activities are always fun.

I know I have to keep this section super vague so members won't flip out, but pledging events are fun. Sometimes they're not what you would expect, but they always end up being entertaining. In addition, a lot of times they actually make you forget about everything else you need to do and focus on what's right in front of you.

7. Each club has some cool traditions. (A.K.A. another section I have to keep vague)

At ACU, most clubs have been around long enough to have a background, even through rechartering. Throughout the years. the members have come up with traditions used in the clubs today, like singing certain songs or dancing certain moves. If you're a part of one of three girls social clubs, you also have to yell from/at objects. The Kojies have their benches, the Siggies have their Wildcat statute, and the GATAs have their fountain. Each group donated the pieces to the school, so in return, the pledges get to respect what the people before them have left. Among this tradition are many others that you can learn about later. #pledgeandfindout

At ACU, social clubs have a long and illustrious history. They were starting to be founded less than ten years after the school officially opened and have been on campus ever since. To be a member of one of these clubs is to carry out the traditions of those before us, the ultimate goal. So remember: Keep calm, smile wide, and pledging isn't funny!