What! I Don't Need No Stinking Sorority!--An NPHC Membership Journey

[SISTERGREEK]

Fast forward several years: Graduate membership pursuit is A Serious Matter! Unlike undergrad, where you might potentially run across members of any given organization on any given day, once you are out in the great wide world it is hard to make genuine contact with members; especially since most members do not generally identify themselves as such, at least not in the ways that undergrads do with nalia and such.

I had quite a few false starts in my pursuit of X-Men. There were times when I thought that I was on the right track and really close to my goal, only to end up back at square one. As I pursued membership with X-Men, my excitement about that prospect motivated my grandmother, who is an X-Men, to reactivate with her chapter (I had not known that she was a member until my junior year in college). I also learned so much more about X-Men as well as the entire Divine Nine. I read all of the histories that I could get my hands on, as well as books about greek life (I even came across a dissertation written about greek life). All of my additional research only confirmed what I already knew, X-Men was the only organization for me and was worth the effort of my pursuit.

Also, in the mean time, I lived my life. I went to graduate school, I continue to serve the community, I continued to be active in other organizations. I alternately felt discouraged, pessimistic, excited, and hopeful throughout my pursuit. I even wrote poetry.