Invited to be an AI, but...

[stelladoro]

Twenty years out of college, I'm pretty happy with my life. I have a great husband and daughter, have been involved with various social groups and have built a decent business. My best friend of many years was in a certain sorority and today said that she'd like to have me be an AI. I feel very honored but I'm also a bit nervous about whether my explanation about why I didn't rush the first time is valid.

It's actually a combination of several things.

1. I had a very full course load and had the impression from movies, etc. that Greek life was all about partying - not something that would mesh with my serious outlook at the time.

2. I'd also been told by a friend in a fraternity that dues were expensive. Maybe it was only a few hundred a year, but as I was working my way through college, every dollar counted. (I'm still very frugal, but saving/spending, say, $300 isn't the burden it was back in 1990.)

3. A Greek-hating boyfriend (who was older and ostensibly knew about these things) told me that a sorority would require me to date guys only in a certain fraternity. (To be honest, "date" wasn't the word he used.) I eventually figured out that he was a jerk, but by then it was too late.

4. In my first year I bit off more than I could chew and ended up with a low GPA from sheer exhaustion, and so my grades weren't high enough for me to rush anyway. I eventually rebounded and did well, but that first year showed me how low I could go.

I made some great friends in college, some of whom were Greek and, surprise surprise, good students who went on to have fine lives (and even - gasp! - marry non-Greeks). I like the idea of being a part of a large organization with a long history and wide support system, and I like the idea of mentoring a young woman who might be confused about starting her adult life - although, I've got to admit, in no way could she be as rudderless as I was at that age.

I think I have a lot to offer as an AI, but am a bit concerned about being shot down before I even have the chance to pass the test.

Thoughts?