Falling in Love with Your Whites

Your Facebook blows up with notifications from your chapter’s group as sisters post “want-ads” for a spare white dress. Texts begin to flood your phone, pleading for you to loan out your extra pair of white pumps. It can only mean one thing: a ritual ceremony is near.

In all the hustle and bustle, you begin to reflect on your own struggle to find your first pair of whites. As a new member, your sisters probably gave you maybe a week or two’s heads-up that you would be needing to find an appropriate white dress and shoes for your first ritual ceremony - which oh-so-inconveniently happened to be well after your Labor Day whites had already been put into storage, leaving you  to scavenge through TJ Maxx clearance bins and resort to resale shops. Somehow, your pledge class managed to show up in appropriate attire - some in mismatched, heeled sandals and cotton dresses from Easters past, while the more fortunate sisters still have their classy graduation attire to get them through this painful experience.

Luckily, you soon realized that maybe whites didn't have to be so bad - especially with more time to prepare. You found yourself scouring every Delia’s, Banana Republic, and Forever 21 sale for white dresses. A trip to Charlotte Russe turned into an endeavor to find the perfect pair of white heels, and pretty soon there was an entire section of your closet dedicated to your whites. You were thrilled - and felt oh-so-official - to own better whites that made you feel more comfortable and even excited to get dressed up for ritual. 

Sure, you've learned your whites can be a hassle, or sometimes a downright pain in the butt: your shoes are scuffed, you can’t find your favorite white dress the day of  initiation, you wore the wrong bra, etc. But when you think about it, there’s a reason why we dress like we’re on our way to our first communions - it’s tradition! To put in perspective, women in your sorority have been performing these same ceremonies for the past 70 or more years (150 in Phi Mu’s case)! Respecting your whites shows respect not only for your chapter and your sisters, but your sorority as a whole. By respecting ritual, you’re also honoring your founders and everything they stood for. Don’t you want to make them proud?

Now that you've settled into your sorority and have been a member for a few semesters, you've probably found your comfort zone and may actually even enjoy wearing your whites, along with your beautiful badge. And it seems as if your other sisters have found their perfect pair of whites, as well: there’s your classy sister in her Jackie Kennedy-worthy Kate Spade; another found ritual as an excuse to buy more Lilly Pulitzer; and yet another (your most fashion-forward sister) wears an elaborate dress complete with tulle and lace. Each sisters’ whites reflect a little bit of themselves and the contribution they make to your chapter, something you should be thankful for and remember each ritual ceremony.

Editor's Note: This piece was written by one of our newest writers, Cara. Leave her some love in the comments on her first post!