DAY FOUR:
I woke up feeling groggy, because the stupid medicine always did that to me. But at least my nose wasn't as disgusting as yesterday. I sounded a little nasal, but I could explain that away better than I could explain a gushing nose or being "stoned", so I wasn't that worried about it.
65Mustang was already in the shower, and I just lay there blinking at the ceiling until the phone rang. Groaning because I was sure it would be Mother, I cleared my throat and put my best voice forward, only to discover that it was my Rho Chi. For half a second (which actually lasted a month) I just knew she was calling to tell me I was not going to pref, that I was a dismal failure at sorority rush, and that I should be banished to another campus where nobody would point and laugh at me. Mercifully she was smart and after she told me who she was said, "Please don't worry, I'm not calling to tell you anything bad about rush. I just wanted to see how you were feeling today and ask if there is anything I can do that will help you with tonight." Oh thank God!! I wasn't a dismal failure at sorority rush, yeah!!!! I thanked her and told her that I was doing better and would probably be fine tonight, but I would be sure to tell her if something went wrong. I hung up and was relieved to know that I would be going back to the ballroom tonight!
My morning kept looking up when 65Mustang emerged from the shower and told me that Mother had already called that morning and I had slept right through it. She told Mother that I had woken up doing fine and was already in the shower (Mother always did believe 65Mustang over me, and for once I was thankful for this!) getting ready for the day. I showered, we got ready, we went to class, etcetera, and instead of eating in our dorm cafeteria for lunch, we instead went to the cafeteria in the main student center- in the same building where we were going through rush, in fact. While we were there, a girl from my rush group came up and said hello. I really hadn't talked to anyone in my group much- I wasn't unfriendly, I was just so absorbed with the rush process- and she seemed really nice. She wanted to talk about rush, of course, and I figured she would probably leave when 65Mustang and I told her about our agreement. But to my surprise, she said that was fine with her and asked if she could hang out and eat with us anyway. She was also a freshman who had graduated from a small private school, and she commuted from her parents' house, so she really didn't know anybody else on campus. We had a pleasant enough conversation and said we would see each other tonight.
65Mustang and I went back to our room to read, collect our thoughts, and get ready for pref. We had been told to wear something very dressy that we would wear to church. I chose a long-sleeved black dress with a floral print and a split-v lace collar. I considered it one of my dressiest dresses, and for good measure, I put used extra hot rollers in my hair and then put it in a banana clip (how's that for a flashback). 65Mustang chose a brick red floral print dress and gathered part of her hair away from her face with a small bow. Our reliable new friend, 57Chevy, arrived wearing a.... black pinstripe suit with a kind of champagne colored shimmery silk blouse, and pearls? Was there a memo sent out that 65Mustang and I didn't get? 57Chevy laughed and told us that we looked really pretty, but I was still nervous about what we were wearing. When we got to the ballroom, there were girls in dresses and a few suits of every shape and color, so I breathed again. We broke up for the moment and went to our Rho Chis.
My Rho Chi hugged me and said she was glad to see me feeling better. She handed my schedule to me and I closed my eyes, then nervously read-
Sky Blue Metallic (nice 1st two sisters, really cute annual philanthropy, started feeling "stoned" in the middle of philanthropy night)
Candy Apple Red (made me feel comfortable, neat philanthropy, strong academics)
Violet Sparkle (nice girls, fun at the parties, I looked like I wasn't feeling well, had a friend in there from high school)
I was happy, but I blinked when I realized that I would not be returning to
Jet Black. At first, I thought maybe I wasn't blonde enough, or tall enough, or pretty enough, or something enough for them. Then my Rho Chi reminded me that there were six sororities in all, and tonight, I could only go to 3 parties, so somebody had to be cut somewhere in order for me to find my home. That kind of grounded me and I shook it off, because while I had liked being at the
Jet Black parties, I realized I wasn't devastated about not returning to their party because I had felt more connected at other places. I suspected that tonight I would face a hard decision.
The girl in my rush group from lunch came over to talk to me. She had gotten invited back to
Sky Blue Metallic, Midnight Blue, and Violet Sparkle, where I would see her later tonight. The Rho Chis gathered us together and told us that since there were three parties tonight, there would not be one big break for everybody- there would be smaller breaks between the parties, and anyone who did not have a party scheduled during a particular period would have a break during that time. I looked around until I met 65Mustang's eyes and held up three fingers to her, trying to ask her if she had three parties on her schedule. She nodded and help up three fingers. So neither us had a break period tonight- that was exciting!
As we started heading out of the room to our first parties, some girls remained behind in the ballroom. It occurred to me that they must not have three parties to attend- and then I realized that one of the girls staying in the ballroom was sophomore badmouther! At first I felt a little evil grin starting, but then she had been nice to me last night when I wasn't feeling well, so I sort of felt bad for her. I had no time to be curious because I was off to my first party.
Sky Blue Metallic- Wow, was their room gorgeous. These girls really knew how to decorate. Inside the door was a table with all the rushees' names on nametags in a particular shape, and we temporarily traded in our rush nametags for these ones. I surprisingly (to me anyway) got preffed by the sister from the first night who was from my mother's hometown. She told me that she had thoroughly enjoyed our conversation that night and had wanted to pref me ever since. Their ceremony was serene and pretty, and some of the sisters got really choked up when they talked about what their sisterhood meant to them. I left their party thinking that maybe they weren't my perfect choice, but they seemed like a good choice. I could still probably be happy there and make Sky Blue Metallic life work for me.
Candy Apple Red- At first this room seemed less well decorated than the previous group's room. The sisters wore matching dresses and looked beautiful and so happy to see us. I got preffed by- the sister who had rushed me on the previous night, who made me so paranoid when she hadn't told me she hoped to see me again! I was so flattered because although I had liked all the sisters I had met from this group, when I spoke with her the previous night, I had been able to tell that Candy Apple Red meant a lot to her. She made me want Candy Apple Red to mean a lot to me, too. When the ceremony occurred, the overhead lights in the room were turned out, and then we could see how beautifully decorated the room was. I literally gasped because it took my breath away. I left this party feeling really special.
Violet Sparkle- The room was filled with this sorority's flower. The sisters were dressed in one of the sorority's colors, and their badges were the most beautiful- I thought- of the three groups I had seen that night. I was preffed by, you guessed it, 68VWConvertible, my friend from high school! She hugged me and told me she was so glad to see me back there tonight. I saw my new co-rushee friend from lunch and waved to her. She grinned back really big and gave me a thumbs up sign. 68VWConvertible showed me a photo album of some of her adventures as a Violet Sparkle and told me how much being a sister had meant to her over the last two years. I asked her how she had known that this group was the group for her. She told me she had two favorites throughout rush week, and had trouble deciding which group was right for her, but she believed in the end that this group called to her heart. I knew I had a look on my face because she was describing to me what I had been feeling the last night or two. She linked her arm in mine and told me that she really hoped that Violet Sparkle was the group that called to my heart, but if it wasn't, the important thing was that I join the group that did call to my heart, because that was where I belonged. I teared up a little when she said that, and she hugged me again. Then the lights dimmed and the ceremony started, and I saw how many candles were in the room. I felt special all over again, and I tried not to cry as I left the room, because I was so confused about my choice. 68VW came over and hugged me again, and said to me, "If the letters on your shirt are different than mine, that's okay. What matters is that you follow the path your heart tells you to follow."
I walked out of the room and the waterworks started. I rushed to the bathroom and was followed shortly after by my Rho Chi. I leaned against the sink, put my face in my hands, and just cried and cried. Finally I slowed down, and she gave me a damp paper towel to pat my face. I told her that I was so happy to have been invited back to such nice groups, but now I had to pick the place where I was supposed to be forever, and I wasn't sure how I could do that. My Rho Chi calmed me down and was very encouraging to me, and said that it sounded like I had a happy dilemma rather than a sad one, so did it need crying about? I thought about it- and she was right- I had liked my entire rush experience, but of all the six groups, I had been lucky enough to have my two favorites to pick from in the end. She walked back into the ballroom with me, where 65Mustang had been hovering and waiting for me. She had already filled out her bid card. 57Chevy was at another table working on hers, as was my new co-rushee lunch friend. My Rho Chi told me she was sure things would work out for the best because it sounded like I would be happy with any of the 3 groups I had preffed.
At first when I sat down, I tried to rationalize my choices, and then I stopped. 68VW herself had told me that I needed to go where my heart called me to go. I felt like I had a choice between:
1. Going with 68VW Convertible's group, where I'd had a good time all week, I could be with a friend from high school and wear a gorgeous badge (remember I was 18 years old thinking this)
2. Going with another group where I knew nobody, but I had felt comfortable at their parties all week, and the girl who preffed me seemed to make her group feel as important to me as it did to her
3. Going with a group where I had mostly had a good time, but there was an awkward moment or two, and they had an annual philanthropy event that I thought was really cute (I could see myself working on this event)
I realized that I was at college to get an education but also, in part, to take chances, and so when I made my choice, I took a chance on a group where I had not known anyone previously, but realized that after each of their parties, I really felt like I had always known then but hadn't met them yet.
In order, on my card, I wrote:
Candy Apple Red
Violet Sparkle
I got up to walk out, and as it turned out, new co-rushee lunch friend was waiting with 65Mustang for me. We waited for 57Chevy, who was still laboring over her decision. 65Mustang went to the restroom, and new co-rushee lunch friend and I quickly recapped our evenings. She had written, in order,
Sky Blue Metallic and Violet Sparkle. She told me she knew what 65Mustang had written, but she didn't tell me, which was fine with me. I had gone from having this underlying curiosity all week about where my own sister would go, to not wanting to know at all because chances were, we would probably end up in different places. I wondered if we would regret our restraint on communication if that happened.
65Mustang returned, and at last, 57Chevy emerged from the ballroom. We walked new co-rushee lunch friend to her car in the parking lot next to he building, then the rest of us headed to the dorm.
We had been told to be near our phones (so in our rooms) between 7:00
and 10:00 am the next morning to find out if we had received bids. Anyone who had classes on Friday morning at 8:00 or 9:00 and could not be by her phone was to report to the ballroom no later than 12:00 noon to see if she had received a bid. My college scheduled very few classes that began after 12:00 noon on Fridays, so our bid day festivities were to occur Friday afternoon. 65Mustang and I did not have class the next morning until 10:00 and we desperately hoped that our calls would come before we left for class.
As we got ready for bed, 65Mustang told me that she did not want to completely break our agreement from earlier in the week, but she couldn't stand keeping something from me until the next day. She told me that she knew one of the groups where I did not go to a party because she did go there, and they told her that I had not returned. I was surprised, and 65Mustang told me that she eliminated that group because when they brought that subject up, it felt to her like they were okay enough with having her as a sister, but they had really wanted both of us, and when she kept selecting them but I didn't, she suddenly felt "second place" with them. She said that during the party she had felt disappointed, because she had liked this group all week, but when she filled out her card and left their name off, she was no longer disappointed, because she felt like the group she chose was one that really fit her. And with that, we went to bed, which means it is time for another-
PIT STOP! The next post will be about Bid Day! Will 66Camaro, 65Mustang, 57Chevy, new co-rushee lunch friend, and (drum roll) sophomore badmouther pull into the same sisterhood, or will someone's sorority career be ended by an ill timed flat tire?
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Still cheering for Candy Apple Red!
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