Growing up an only child, I never felt like I was really missing
out by not having a sibling. I have lots of cousins which helped
fill the void and I also really liked being the focus of my parents’
attention. Sisters were just not on my childhood radar but little did I
know how important sisters would become.
As the time approached for me to go to college, I selected
Winthrop and I knew when I got to campus that I wanted to join a
sorority…specifically, Tri Sigma.
I worked at Bath and Body Works when I was in high school with a
girl named Patty O’Dell. She was a Tri Sigma at Winthrop and I just
thought she was the best thing since sliced bread. First semester
freshmen at WU were not allowed to rush at the time (a term which is now
outdated and has been replaced by the politically correct “recruitment” but I
digress). Unfortunately grades were not my number one priority
during my first couple of years at school but I had a lot of fun. I
made so many memories, formed friendships that I still have today, I had my
heart broken and I made some questionable choices but I wouldn’t change a
thing. Finally at the end of my sophomore year, I had the
appropriate GPA to pledge a sorority (again, I’m showing my age – pledge is
another term no longer used). I was happy when Tri Sigma invited me
to become a part of its sisterhood.
I learned so much during my collegiate experience and so many of
those life lessons stick with me today. Being in a Greek
organization is not for everyone. Some people just don’t get it…some
people think it’s like buying your friends…some people think that it’s just
silly and frivolous. It’s definitely one of those things someone
will never get if they have not been a part of it.
It’s no big surprise that I love FB. I love seeing and
making silly posts. I enjoy photos of my friends’ children. I like
the recipes and the “news” articles and I really love the Delta Pi Group where
I get to connect with my Sigma sisters. Due to this group, I have
formed friendships with women because of our shared Sigma bond, the fact that
we attended the same college and that many of us are wives and/or
mothers. The story of one of these ladies really resonated
with me. She was the mother of three young sons and she battled
breast cancer for seven years. She was beautiful on the inside and
out. Even though we never met in person, we became
friends. I followed her story and was in awe of her
courage. She had a quirky sense of humor and I could count on her to
comment on some of my unusual status updates and tease me for my
age-inappropriate love of Britney Spears. I often felt like if our
paths had crossed at Winthrop, we would have been great
friends. Sadly, she passed away and I’m truly heartbroken. It’s
strange to mourn someone I never really knew but I guess at the core of it…I
did know her because I know myself. She, too, was a WU alum, a Tri
Sigma, a wife, a mother, a daughter and a friend to many. As I
frequently tell my daughter, “Life is not fair.” Today is a sad
reminder of that fact.
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