I didn’t know much about sororities before entering college, but I always assumed they weren’t for me. I had some idea that they were exclusionary on purpose and that they were for girly girls, and I was neither of those things. But as my time in college went on, I realized there were benefits to being in a sorority that I was missing out on. For one, they got to be involved in homecoming and other big events, just because they were a sorority. But the biggest thing was that they were a group of friends, and they had each other when they needed each other. So, for a number of years after college, I regretted not pledging.

But, like I usually do, I found a solution; I joined a sisterhood. We’re not an official sorority, but we have a lot of similar characteristics. I basically had to pledge and get voted in. Our “founder” reached out to me and asked if I wanted to meet up for a play date. That went well, so she introduced me to our “treasurer.” I passed that interview, so I was invited on a big trip, where I was essentially hazed for the weekend, but I survived and made the cut. There’s a core group of us, and we all rotate through positions, like social, public relations, and recruitment chairs.

Aside from the technicalities, the best similarity is that we are a group of friends who support each other. We share our ups and downs together. We travel, celebrate, and adventure together. We also cry, complain, and do nothing together. But the best thing about us is that we’re always laughing together, sometimes at each other, but usually with each other. There’s nothing we can’t turn into a joke, and that makes living this crazy life tolerable.

We’ve referred to ourselves as a tribe, posse, core, mountain bitches, lake-lovin’ ladies, winos, and hockey hoes. None of them know that I also think of our group like it’s a sorority, so maybe I’ll just surprise them with t-shirts one day. I’ll get the Greek letters Λ Ο Λ printed on them (that’s LOL in English).