[peppermint23]

Pref Round

The day of preference round - ours was a very special "pref night" - my mom called me to ask how I was doing. She knew I was still anxious and worried about the whole process.

She also told me that she'd taken a look at the websites of Coca Cola and Cream Soda and was a little surprised I wanted to be a Cream Soda.

"They seem to party and drink a lot," she commented. "It seems to be their focus."

"I don't care about that, I like to have fun too," I responded.

"I know that, but it doesn't seem like you. I looked at Coca Cola's website and from the photos they posted, they seem like a great group of girls who genuinely love each other. It just seems more real, more like you."

I agreed with her, though I defended Cream Soda of course as I thought they loved each other too and it was hard to judge from photos online.

For pref I dolled myself up. I was feeling a little better. I put on make-up, did my hair and wore my best black dress and heels. I thought I looked great and felt confident.

I was shaking so badly waiting for my pref invites. Luckily I hadn't gotten the dreaded call that day, so I knew I wasn't cut yet. Finally I was handed my slip, which read:




Coca Cola

I was very, very sad that Cream Soda had cut me. I had worked myself up into this fantasy of being their sister, and I was also disappointed that I could only attend one preference ceremony and wouldn't end up with a "choice" (or so I thought ) like other PNMs.

I called my mom and cried to her a little. She told me to go enjoy my last party, but the sounds of excited PNMs in my group was breaking my heart. In that moment, I felt like a reject.

I went to my Rho Gamma, the one I trusted the most. She said she'd walk me to the Coca Cola house as I was the only girl in our rush group who had them as the first party of the night. On the way I expressed my disappointment and deep sadness about the process and getting cut from chapters I wanted so much. She assured me it wasn't my fault, told me to enjoy the party at Coca Cola and report back to her afterwards so we could discuss how I felt before I made my final decision. She was, simply put, amazing.

And now for the Coca Cola preference party...

I was paired with a girl named Rachel, who I'd spoken to various times before. The desserts the girls served were FABULOUS, and the sister serving them was a friend of mine that I knew was in this chapter. She spotted me and winked.

This was nothing like the previous recruitment nights. Without the other bubbly, peppy chapters to "outshine" them, the girls of Coca Cola seemed much more relaxed and at ease. At the time they were the smallest chapter on campus (making recruitment extra hard on them), which was a bit of a turn-off for me in the beginning, but I realized that it was actually a plus as I could really stand out and be someone in this chapter, and the girls were clearly very close.

I asked for a tissue and apologized to Rachel for potentially grossing her out, but she shrugged and laughed and said, "Don't worry about it!" It was night and day compared to the reception I'd had at Cream Soda. I decided to put my sadness aside and start to get excited about Coca Cola, and I did!

I asked Rachel all about her sisterhood and the fun events they put on, and the more she told me, the more excited I got. This is it, I thought. I'm about to join a SISTERHOOD.

Then there was the ceremony. For those of you in sororities, you know, this is when it all gets real. This is the perhaps the most honest, beautiful part of recruitment.

I stood next to Rachel and witnessed the insanely gorgeous, very special ceremony. In part of it (without giving anything away ), the sisters essentially tell you that you are what's missing in their chapter. This made me cry.

A few sisters read stories about their relationship with Coca Cola and what it meant for them. My friend who had served me dessert sobbed as she read her story about her and her relationship with her Little. I was touched by all of it.

Though I left a bit shaken. I'd had a great time, but still was feeling the cuts, being the sensitive person I am. I found my Rho Gamma and told her how I felt. She smiled and told me it was up to me, but advised me to give it a shot. "I think you'll like it," she said knowingly.

So that night I finally "ranked" Coca Cola....

Bid Night

I already knew where I was going for bid night, so unlike most of the PNMs, I didn't have a reason to be nervous. Still, the wait was exciting as we all stood around in the student union waiting to be let into the assembly room where we'd learn our fate. I talked to girls in my rush group and tried to comfort them a little. They were TERRIFIED.

At my school the sororities stand outside the student union with their "standards" (big wooden letters) awaiting their new members, chatting, chanting and clapping. It's very, very fun, even in the freezing cold during the informal rush bid night.

We all filed into the auditorium and sat with our rush groups, facing the stage. After a brief speech from the Panhel President it was time to open our bid cards. ONE...TWO...THREE! I opened mine, and saw...







Sigma Delta Tau

Naturally

I was like "Yay cool!" while all around me girls were SCREAMING their lungs out or sobbing because they were upset or disappointed. This was when our Rho Gammas did the big reveal of what sororities they were in. My favorite RG turned out to be a member of Pepsi, and I was a little sad we wouldn't get to be sisters. But when the lone Sig Delt RG flashed her letters, I went to join her and my new sisters.

And we had the biggest pledge class ever for my chapter: 18 girls! After taking a group photo, we ran outside to meet our new sisters.

I can't fully explain the rush and joy of running outside and being welcomed into screaming, cheering, excited arms, though I'm sure many of you know.

That first night was part awkward as our pledge class didn't know each other yet, and part wonderful being so warmly welcomed. The girls were SO HAPPY at how many new members they had, and a girl from recruitment hugged me and said she was so happy I joined. Another girl told me she had been hoping I'd get a bid. I realized then I'd never had to fake it with these girls, they'd always accepted me for me, and it had always been the most relaxing, easy place to be during recruitment.

As it turns out, my friend who winked at me and talked about her Little during pref turned out to be my Big Sister! I was to be Little #2.

I'm actually tearing up right now as I write this, remembering my final preference ceremony with my Sigma Delta Tau sisters last fall. I was an emotional wreck during that pref, but held it together as best as I could for the PNMs. My sister next to me noticed me crying silently and hugged me to her, and I knew I'd been home all along.

Thanks for reading my recruitment story. Yes, it had its ups and downs, just like my time in my chapter. Like my 3 1/2 years with SDT, it was at times painful and emotional, but ultimately joyful and worth everything in the end. I learned so much about myself during that process and though I regret a few things I did, I have to remind myself that I was only 19 and I was well, only being myself.