We'll start off with some background information to set the scene...
At the end of my senior year of high school, when I finally committed to my school, my mom was absolutely THRILLED that it had a thriving Greek community. Her alma mater did as well, however she was not able to afford a sorority when she was in college. It was something she always regretted, and she pushed me and pushed me to sign up for rush insisting that I'd have fun and make so many friends.
At the time, I could think of about a million reasons why I SHOULDN'T rush, including the following:
1. I was the straight-A valedictorian of my high school, and no sorority would want a nerd in their house.
2. I was painfully shy and making conversation during rush would be excruciating on every level of my existence.
3. I was coming from over 1,000 miles away and knew NO ONE at my new school, and no connections surely meant no bid.
4. I was pursuing a notoriously difficult major, and a sorority would take up too much time that I'd need to spend studying.
5. Sorority girls were all cheerleaders and pageant girls whereas I was a geeky musician who excelled in two instruments and spent my weekends traveling to auditions and solo competitions rather than waving pom-poms at football games.
6. I was neither blonde nor noticeably pretty.
7. I held tightly to my Christian faith, and pledging a sorority would mean having to abandon my beliefs in order to drink, party, and hook up.
I KNOW I KNOW I KNOW, every single item on that list is a horrible misconception. Rest assured, I have since changed my views and now view Greek life with nothing but appreciation. But at the time, I was convinced that I would be hands-down the WORST pnm my school had ever seen.
Nevertheless my dear mother, worried about her painfully quiet daughter making friends in a faraway new place, signed me up for recruitment. And thus did I reluctantly begin the whirlwind of preparations.
As I said previously, I came to my school from over 1,000 miles away. Greek life is prominent in the schools from my home region, but the nature of the sororities and in some cases the specific chapters present at the schools are very different simply due to the geography. This made the whole process extremely unpredictable, and securing recommendations was beyond difficult. But the more hard worked I poured into assembling outfits and mailing off recommendations, the more I started to think that maybe something that required this much work was something worth doing.
My new school had sixteen sororities. I'll name them after instruments for the purpose of my story, and because I love a good symphony.
I'll also include some previous connections to the chapters as necessary.
Violin
Trumpet - This sorority didn't have much of a presence in my home region, but through a friend-of-a-friend-of-a-friend I managed to meet an alum of this very chapter who had moved to my hometown after graduating from my new school. Not only that, but she had graduated with the same difficult degree I planned on pursuing. We met for coffee to talk about Greek life at my new school, and she was smart and sweet, which began to chip away at some of my misconceptions about sorority women. She also ensured that I went into rush with a VERY high opinion of this chapter.Clarinet
French Horn
Cello
Flute
Piano - Let's just say that my opinion of this chapter wasn't great going into Rush. Based on the girls I knew who had pledged this sorority at schools in my home state, I did NOT think I was going to fit in here.
Percussion
Saxophone - Going into Rush, I wanted to be a Saxophone soooooo badly. I was absolutely in love with their philanthropy. I had close personal ties to its mission and had spent countless hours during high school working on volunteer projects there. I wanted nothing more than to maintain my relationship with the organization and continue being a part of their work. I had also heard that this was a "top" chapter on campus, and I had a glowing recommendation from someone who was just as passionate about the philanthropy as myself.
Viola - My best friend's mom had been president of a chapter of this sorority during college (at another university). I looked up to her a lot and therefore had a very high opinion of this sorority going into rush. She also wrote me a fabulous rec.
Guitar
Double Bass - I had many older friends who had pledged this sorority at schools in my home state, so I had a good opinion of it prior to rush and was anxious to meet the chapter at my new school.
Trombone - I was the first person in my immediate family to go Greek, but a distant relative (I call her a "cousin" but to be honest, I'm not sure if we're technically related) was a Trombone. She wrote me a fabulous rec and this was the closest thing I had to a legacy chapter.
Oboe
Bassoon
Voice
I'm so excited to tell my story; I hope y'all will enjoy it!!