citizenship.

being a citizen means doing what is best for your fellow citizens.  in alpha chi, it means doing what is best for your sisters.  i believe that most of our sisters do what is best for another, but sometimes it is difficult to see beyond your personal needs.  also, people arent always an adequate judge of what is best because they cannot see past their own flaws.

we just had elections, and it was an awkward time for a our chapter. multiple people believed they could run axo best and its hard to tell your sisters that they are wrong and THIS girl is the best for the job.

i stole this video from a friend on facebook:  dane sanzenbacher made a joke of lebron's commercial in order to raise awareness for organ donations. this is being a citizen.  going above and beyond to help others.

panel

the greek leadership panel was inspiring to say the least.  i wasn't sure how the conversation would go, and honestly, it started out a little awkward.  i joined my sorority last year and haven't held a leadership position, so to be asking these questions of people who have accomplished so much for greek life, was a little overwhelming.

one thing i took away from this discussion is quite simple: do what YOU can do.  it reminds me of that ghandi quote that everyone knows, "be the change you wish you to see in the world." one of the girls advised us to get involved.  a leadership position is not necessary to do great things. you can make a difference on your own.  this is a goal that we have set for ourselves in this class.  but i've began to realize, it is much easier said than done.  our group is smaller, since i believe one of the members dropped out of our class, and we're all involved in different things which makes it difficult to meet.  i know we have a goal and a vision for change, but we don't know the avenue in which to pursue it.  i'm impressed by our panel's initiative and, most of all, follow-through. because it is very difficult to actually discover how to get things done when you have such grandiose ideas for our community.

our panel also reminded me of alpha chi omega's president.  she was not on the panel that the class spoke to, but last week, for the first time, i read her blog.  she is in the greek presidents class right now. and her blog amazed me.  we've spent a significant amount of time this quarter talking about congruency, and i can honestly say that her blog and her values are the most congruent thing i have read to date.  to be fair, i don't know most of the other students in the class well enough to know whether or not their posts have been congruent to their actions.

sisterhood is a relatively new concept to me.  i had two brothers growing up. they are twins and a year and a half younger than i am.  they stuck together all the time, and i was kinda on my own.  my best friends from high school, i considered sisters, but i did not sleep, eat, study & live with them the way i do with axo.  christine, our PRESIDENT at a chi o, defines sisterhood in everything she does.  when she sees something that she does not agree with, she speaks up. and when she sees a sister doing something extraordinary, she always expresses her pride.  more often than not, i hear her telling girls how proud she is to have them as a sister because of this or that.  she has changed our chapter for the better.  she has brought unity and encouragement and brought out the best in each and every one of us.  i have doubt in some of my sisters sometimes.  i believe that they may take on more than they can handle, but if christine believes this, she does not voice it.  she helps her sister and helps that girl prove to herself and her chapter that we can do more than we ever thought possible.  this is her symphony. it is loud and evident in our house and in my life.  it is inspiring and i only hope i can bring the same sincerity to my life in anything that i do.

oath.

to get started on this, i googled a few definitions of oath. my favorite one is as follows: A solemn pledge or promise to a god, king or another person, to attest to the truth of a statement or contract; the affirmed statement or promise accepted as equivalent to an oath; i really like this definition because it calls the oath a contract.  contracts are 2-ways. when one makes an oath, theyre not only making a promise, but there is also a sort of deal involved.

when i pledged my loyalty and sisterhood to alpha chi, they also made a promise to me. a promise to be my family, a promise to accept me and a promise to be there when i needed someone.

we takes oaths when a member of or attending the chapter relations and standards board, both to keep the person's case a secret and for the sister to keep CRS's decision secret.

 after promising we are who we say we are, we choose a president, who takes an oath to be the president he claims to be.

i enjoy thinking of an oath in a back and forth scenario because then, it seems like more of a compromise.  it seems unfair to make a promise to someone if they don't intend to make it matter or count.  the oath is strengthened by two parties' involvement.

to uphold my oath, i try to ELEVATE my chapter in every way possible.  i know that when i am in my letters, people who don't even know me can connect me to my chapter.  and out of my letters, i can still be recognized as an alpha chi, or at least a member of the greek community.  every person has faults, but because we are associated with a large organization, it is easy to place the blame on our name.  so while in my letters, i try to be on class on time and be attentive and watch my language and actions.  i wear my letters to the library and share stories about our philanthropic events with my friends from home and non-greek friends.  though not completely our fault, since movies like Animal House came out 12 years before i was born, it is still our responsibility to live above the words said about us and attempt to change the minds of who ever we can. and we need to try our best not to give up.. its hard because these ideas have been around for so long..

i found this website with some helpful inspiration on all aspects of life.. including elevation:

http://www.pickthebrain.com/blog/22-reasons-to-never-give-up/

pride.

its hard to focus on the negatives when surrounded by such a source of pride.  today, our chef had a problem and needed to leave the house.  tonight is our scholarship dinner, at which professors were invited and awards are given to those who have excelled academically.  as of 2pm, we were screwed.  less than an hour later, tables were set up, plates, knives, forks and spoons were arranged.  another cook was consulted, and dinner looks like it is going to go on without a hitch.  approximately six girls who were at the house at the time pulled together to create a comfortable situation instead of a stressful and failure of a dinner.

these girls are why i am proud of axo.

last weekend was our date party.  yes, there was drinking and high priced dresses, but we conducted ourselves in a classy way and had a great time and all returned home safe and sound.

these stories don't make the news.  we dont get recognized unless we cause a scene, defile public property or make someone sick.  our events that run smoothly and are a sense of fun, pride and sisterhood don't make headlines.  yes, there is room for improvement, but this is still a great organization, even if it isnt depicted as such in the media.