|
I'm leaving in a little bit (with foot now healed) to meet up with two other women to plan an upcoming event in our community. So here it goes!
So formal rush begins!!! The clothes I had either made or purchased over the summer were unpacked, ironed, and ready to go. That was the summer that empire-waist dresses just started coming into fashion and I bought two having that silhouette. More about one of those dresses later.
Open House with all of us going to each of the six houses over the course of two days was the first event. Some 600 had signed up for rush. With a maximum of 15-20 or so new pledges for each house, I knew the cuts/dropouts would be deep. At that time, there was a limit of 55 members allowed for each of the six sororities. No quota additions, no snap bids, no COB, no RFM. It was now or never. I knew where there was mutual interest for me, but I also knew that competition would be very stiff, especially for those I was most interested in. And I had heard that the group of women I was most interested in joining was VERY hard to get a bid to.
So in pumps and pearls, panty hose and the full complement of jewelry, handbags, makeup,, nails and hair, all 600 of us minus some who had dropped out already spent about 30 minutes in each of the six houses over a period of one day. It was only the previous year that rushees had not worn hats and gloves! No door chants, no singing, just all of us lined up outside with the sorority actives along the hall and up the staircases to greet us.
In no particular order I am giving each of them the name of a Shakespearean heroine. My undergrad degree was in English Lit after all! And they are all very interesting characters! They are:
Portia
Cleopatra
Bianca
Rosalind
Miranda
Beatrice
I had someone escort me through each house, which I took as a favorable sign, as some of the rushees (ancient term, I know!) were in larger groups with one active for all of them. There really wasn't time for much conversation other than the amenities and the usual questions asked of all rushees. Much of the time was spent by the rush chairman of each giving a presentation on their sorority in the living rooms, including members who were known across campus and alums known nationally, as well as any awards the group had been given. I will go around in a circle with the same placement the houses were within the circle.
Bianca was one of the groups which had starting rushing me my Freshman year, and I had formed a close friendship with one of them, a lovely, gracious young woman, Elizabeth. So I already knew and liked many of the members. This group was very, very well regarded on campus. I also went to breakfast with them right before formal rush started. Elizabeth met me at the door and took me through. I felt quite reassured to receive many warm greetings once in their house. I felt very confident when I left them.
Rosalind was the sorority of the wife of a family friend who was also from this chapter. She was a real sweetheart. The members when I went through were a very eclectic, rather quirky, and interesting group. I had met several women previously in other venues I had felt a connection with. But seeing them with the rest of the chapter puzzled me as they seemed so different from the others. They seemed like they just loved their chapter, though.
Next up was Beatrice, another impressive group to me for what I was looking for: excellent grades, activities, and reputation of having high standards and values. But I didn't really know very many of them, and they hadn't started rushing me until the summer when I was away and couldn't accept any invitations. They also had invited me to breakfast once we were back on campus, but I had already accepted my maximum for breakfast for the two days before rush started. A Beatrice member was the one who had written me to tell me that I had been one of two Sophomores selected to participate in the formal welcome to all Freshmen women. But I felt a bit adrift going through their house as I didn't really know any of them well personally. Being a "people person" this did affect me.
Next around the circle all the housing was arranged in was Miranda. These girls were very, very sweet, reasonably active on campus, and "good" girls with a few standout members. They did a good job of presenting their sorority. But they seemed rather lackluster to me, as did a couple of actives who were in my dorm. I didn't see them as a place for me.
Cleopatra was next, and I was surprised that their presentation was a lot more imaginative and creative than I had expected. They were the loudest and most boisterous group and clearly loved their sorority. But -and a BIG but for me- they had the (deserved) reputation of being pretty wild and hard partyers. They pretty much paired up with one fraternity which had the same profile most of them did: very good looking, very polished socially, and heavy drinking and party pals. Lowest grades of all the Greeks; and many pledges who had to wait a semester to get their grades up to become actives as they didn't make the grades required by their National the semester they pledged. They were a "desirable" sorority, but I felt I had very little I had in common with them. And I disliked the fact that as soon as a young woman pledged them she dyed her hair either very black or very blond and wore very heavy make-up.
Last was Portia, which had also started rushing me my Freshman year. It was also the sorority of our family doctor's wife, the family lawyer's wife, and the aunt of a good friend from high school. I had met many more Portias than I had the Biancas, although I had probably spent more time with the Biancas.. The more I got to know them, the higher they went in my estimation. I also went to breakfast with them right before formal rush started. But going into the house for the first round, I saw ahead of me four other rushees wearing pins from the same very well-regarded fraternity and greeted like they were already best friends with many of the actives. Beautiful girls, very poised, and looking very confident. Lots of fraternity pins on lots of other actives including very prominent fraternities in private colleges. Also a good many LARGE rocks as engagement rings. I was warmly greeted, the presentation was very good, and of course included the fact that Portia had received the trophy for being the outstanding sorority on campus. Well, they had been rushing me, so they must be seeing something in me. But I was feeling less confident than I had in Bianca.
We all went back to our dorms and waited until the next day to see which if any had invited us back for the second round of parties. I honestly hadn't noticed or made any judgement about which physical house was the nicest., other than the fact that the Cleopatra house looked like someone had put quite a bit of money into it. I also noticed that the Portia house had a framed, signed Picasso poster in it that I wanted to know more about.
|