Giving Thanks!

Happy Friday Peeps!

Yesterday I was blessed enough to share my home with one of my High School Besties! It was great to see her, reminisce about old times, and break bread with her. I hope all of you had a wonderful Thanksgiving as well.

I was thrilled to see my timeline, IG, and twitter page filled with Sorors crossing into Delta-land. Some came from chapters that just came back on the yard, brand new charter members establishing a new chapter, PWIs, HBCUs, etc. I was also happy to see pictures and videos of new members or other Greek Letter Organizations (AKA, Alpha, Omega, and Zeta). Some are still going through their process, and I am sure they can't WAIT until they cross over into Greekland. So what are you all thankful for this year?

Why Pledge? (PART I)

Pledging a Greek Letter Organization was one of the best decisions I ever made. Some may ask me why? What is "so special" about becoming a member of one of the Divine Nine? Well first off, although I am a member of the Divine Nine, I must also note (as I have done before) that I am a member of other Greek Letter Organizations. Several of them mind you. So here are a few reasons why I enjoy being a member.

1. The bond that I have between my line sisters. When I first met my line sisters I didn't know them. NONE of them. We were all strangers put together, with different backgrounds, majoring in various subjects in college,  but we all had one common goal. To become members of the same sorority. It was scary at first. Well at least for me it was scary.  I am also VERY cautious of who I allow in my personal space. I didn't know these women from Eve, yet I knew that was about to change. I realized after being chosen that I had to let my guard down for me to get to know these women. We grew to not only know each other but respect and LOVE each other. It was beautiful. The experience that I had with these women, I would NEVER trade for anything else. They had my back, they dried my tears, held me down, encouraged me, and they were, and still are my support system.

2. The bond that I had with other Greeks. When you become a member of an organization, it's more than just the "Three" Letter across your chest. You now have this AMAZING Divine 9 community to bond with.  The love you are shown from the Greek community is fantastic! We support each other including going to each other events, participating in community service projects together, going on road trips as well as bonding together.

3. Becoming a member allowed me to have Leadership opportunities. I  have held various offices with my sorority including President, Vice President, Chaplain, Recording Secretary, Corresponding Secretary, and Chapter Photographer. It was a joy working with other members in the chapter. These qualities have helped me after college, in my career, and different facets of my life.

4. Shopping! Okay, so this is like a shallow answer, but hey, I can't talk about being a member of a BGLO and not talk about Paraphernalia! As a young girl, there was this cute little Store in Evergreen Plaza (Chicago, on 95th and Western) and my mom would shop at one of her favorite stores called "Montgomery Ward." Right across from Montgomery Ward there was a these cute Black Store that sold Greek Items. While my mom would shop in MW, I ask her if I could go across the aisle to the store. They had the CUTEST things in there — elephants, Plaques, Shirts, Jewelry, Books, Artwork, etc. When I FINALLY crossed, my oldest sister bought me an elephant from that store. The reason why I TREASURE that elephant so much is for two reasons. ONE because my sister purchased it for me, and two that store no longer exist (Evergreen also doesn't exist anymore), and it brings back so many memories of when I would go to the store and daydream about purchasing items from there.  Since crossing, I have bought SO much Pari it's ridiculous. LOL! But truth be told all of my treasures have a story behind them, and each story is precious and unique. The story ranges from my first elephant, my first jewelry, my first shirt, etc.

5. Connections! When I first moved to Arizona for school reasons I first became a member at large.  This meant that I was no longer affiliated with a chapter, but I am financial with the National Chapter. After a year I found a chapter and transferred my membership from being a Membership at Large to a member of my local chapter. While I was in the last semester of my graduate degree, another local chapter of my sorority invited me to sing at our Joint Founders Day event. I performed, and a few weeks later a soror from the chapter contacted me to see if I taught music. I thought she was asking because she wanted to know if she wanted me to go to a job fair with her. It turns out, she was a brand new principal with a brand new school opening up in the Valley and wanted me to apply. Nevertheless, I  applied, interview and was given the job. She was a fantastic boss. The only thing we had in common before she hired me was we were sorority sisters. After hearing me sing she contacted me to see if I also taught music. After working for her for a year, we grew very close to the point of traveling to South Korea with each other for a Sorority International Sisterhood event together.

That's all I will list for now. Watch out for Part II!

Ciao for now!

V

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Coming Soon to a Campus Near You.................

I love this time of year......April is always the month when my social media accounts are filled with pictures of New Sorors/Sistergreeks/Fraternity crossing over into Greek-land. This weekend alone, I have seen over 15 Delta Chapters post pictures of their new members. My heart is warm. I also received email msgs from people who have followed my blog send me pictures of themselves in their paraphernalia. (18 Deltas, 5 AKAs, 2 Zetas, 3 Alphas, 1 Omega, and 3 Kappas to be exact so far). Although this is a time for celebration, and happy tears for some, this is also a time of sadness, or bitterness for others. This can be due to not making "line" receiving a letter of rejection, and not understanding how she made it, and you didn't. I have addressed this in my blog before, so I won't rehash what I have already stated, but remember there is always next time. Not making "line" the first time is NOT the end of the world...It will just make the time when you DO make the line, that much sweeter, TRUST ME!

If you have a friend/family member that just crossed into GreekLand, congratulate them. Tell them you are genuinely happy for them.  You never know, that may be YOU next year. :)

Founders Day Celebration.....

I was so excited today to attend my chapter's founders day celebration. It was fun, festive, and educational. Originally were going to have Soror Daphne Maxwell-Reid as the guest speaker, but unfortunately she had an emergency and had to cancel at the last minute.  Thankfully we were able to secure Past Second Vice President Chelsea Hayes. She was AWESOME!!!! 

The entire day was filled with positive energy, love and sisterhood. We also had an opportunity to give back to the community. Our Community Service Project; Blessing Bags. We were able to put together over 150 bags for the homeless and those re-entering society following incarceration.

Sorors hard at work!

The Finished Product

Thank You!!!!

Happy Friday Everyone.....

These last few weeks have been hectic on my end, but I am so happy it's FRIDAY!!!! YAY! (Praise Break) I enjoy my weekends. I will especially enjoy NEXT WEEKEND! My darling husband told me to pack my bags, take Friday off, and we are going on a mini-vaca for V-day.  It's been a while since we have been able to make a couple's getaway, so this is long overdue.

I had to make a post tonight, to merely say "Thank You." I realized on this evening that this blog had reached 1.4 million views. WOW! I am so grateful that people are finding my posts interesting and filled with information.  When I started this blog, I never dreamed of it reaching that many views to be quite honest. There are other BGLO blogs out there, as well as YouTube videos I'm sure. However, you all made this possible.

So.......I am taking special requests....What other things would you like for me to discuss on this blog?

The Myth of Pledging Part I

Happy Friday Folks!

I hate being sick. First, my oldest brother spent the Holidays with me, and he brought his California cold with him. Then my darling husband caught his cold, and NOW I caught HIS cold. Being sick is for the birds. I hope to spend the weekend in bed, drugged up on Nyquil and feeling hopeful that I will be able to shake this cold.

I hope your new year is off to a great start. I am down 8 pounds, so I am thrilled! I decided to blog tonight about the myths about pledging. And there are plenty. So let's dive right in.

Since I am over 25, and I am still working on my undergraduate degree, I have to wait and pledge a graduate chapter once I graduate from college.

MYTH!- I had stated before in my "Journey to Greek life" that one of my line sisters was well in her 30's when she joined. I also have a dear friend of mine that pledged Alpha Kappa Alpha with her mom! She was 19, and her mom was 43.

To join a BGLO, you need to step.

MYTH! Stepping is just a small part of being a member of a BGLO. I know a lot of sorors that have NEVER stepped, or strolled after becoming a member. It's just a perk of becoming a member, definitely not a requirement. If you feel you have two left feet, or stepping isn't your thing, don't worry about it.

I can ask anyone to write me a letter of recommendation.

MYTH! -When I was interested in becoming a member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority Inc. I will never forget stumbling across "So you want to be Delta" written by BeeJae Jackson-Bulter. In her blog, she wrote that you should ONLY ask someone who personally know you. Someone who you can trust. She even went as far as to say, someone, you would feel comfortable with leaving them along with your husband.

You need to give up your life while pledging...

Well, it depends. Giving up your life is relative. What do I mean by that? Learning about the organization, taking and passing the tests to gain membership, bonding with your line brothers and line sisters, takes a lot of time. If you are going through MIP at the undergraduate level, it will take a ton of your time. The only thing you will have time for is school work, studying, hopefully, a part-time job, and that's it. If you are going through MIP at the graduate level, then outside of your full-time job, children, spouse, etc.

The hardest part of pledging is ....well.....pledging.

MYTH- Everyone knows that the real work begins AFTER you join the organization.