Sigma Kappa Sigma K

This past weekend was sorority recruitment. And the first time in 6 years I was not a participant of recruitment as either an active or an alumna member. So in memory of the best 4 years of my life. Here is what it means to be in a sorority :) 

1. Bid day: The moment where you find out if the sorority you want to belong to also chooses you as a member. Now theres a lot of things that goes into this process, but basically it is the moment you find your home. Sure, that sounds dumb, and believe me I thought that until I was initiated and I realized the commitment I was making. 

2. Home away from home. So everyone told me this was my new "home." I laughed, sure this was a group of girls that I would spend the next four years with, but how could they be home? Then I got initiated, and I realized that these girls, and only these girls share a secret bond. We share secrets that very few people in this world know. I thought, how deep do those secrets go? 

3. You learn what the secrets actually mean. You get a Big Sister, and you take a little. You learn that your big sister, is actually a big sister. Meaning she is there for you for every heart break, every rough night, every failing grade. She is there to celebrate you acing your exams, or your new boyfriend, or the internship you landed. And you learn that you do the same for your little. You sit with her in a car with Dairy Queen in hand as cries to you about her break up, or you comfort her with deaths in a family. You bake her goods, you buy her sweat shirts, you make her paddles, only so she does the same to her little. People refer to them as your "greek big" and your "greek little sister" but you know its more than that. They are your family. 

4. Whats family with out fun? You attend all of these sister hood events like paint balling and of course spa night. You go to dances, fraternity dances (which you are so thankful you have sisters there for those weekends!) You tailgate at every football game and you even take 17 of you to the Bahamas for Spring Break.

5. And then its time to leave. Your 4 years is up and you have to leave all of these ladies behind. You will have lasting relationships with some of them, but some of them not. And as you go through the alumni ceremony you realize this is the last time that these ladies, the ladies you went through recruitment with, the 32 ladies you lived in the Sigma Kappa house with, the ladies who have seen every up and every down but encouraged you every step of the way, and its the last time you will ever be in the same room with them, sharing the same secrets. 

But you realize it's time to go. Its time to move on, and every year around this time of recruitment you are reminded of the memories you have made. You can look back and be thankful for the organization who gave you more than just friends, but gave you sisters. And you can look at the new members envious, because they have no idea the experience they are about to have, but you do, and you can look at them and smile knowing their lives are going to be forever changed.