By Sarah Hartzheim
As graduation rolls around, all of the seniors have been doing a lot of reflecting on what Theta has meant to them. To me, the past four years in Theta have come with so many wonderful times and laughs, as well as challenges and changes. I think that after many semesters in Theta it is easy to think that it is all normal, but as I begin to leave OWU and enter the real world I can see more clearly how unique this experience has been. Theta has given me so many things, and I want to try to put just a few of them into words in terms of these four years.
As graduation rolls around, all of the seniors have been doing a lot of reflecting on what Theta has meant to them. To me, the past four years in Theta have come with so many wonderful times and laughs, as well as challenges and changes. I think that after many semesters in Theta it is easy to think that it is all normal, but as I begin to leave OWU and enter the real world I can see more clearly how unique this experience has been. Theta has given me so many things, and I want to try to put just a few of them into words in terms of these four years.
Freshmen year, Theta gave me friends and a family. The pure comfort of being in a house I was so happy and honored to join made OWU my home. Seeing older sisters be so happy just to have me join their community made me so excited for what college was going to bring. The friends and role models inspired me more than they will ever know. I learned that being smart, ambitious, and kind is cool. I learned that Theta could lift me higher.
Sophomore year, Theta gave me opportunity. My sisters saw what I, at times, did not see in myself and pulled me to join them in clubs and campus organizations. Before I knew it, I was doing more than I thought I ever could do in a day. I had the support of my sisters emotionally, and I was also taught leadership skills that would last for years to come. Older sisters became my mentors and guided me through college life. They pushed me to do and to be more.
Junior year, Theta gave me love. During this year, I left the friends that had become so dear to me. Some of us went abroad to Argentina, Switzerland, Kenya, and Morocco, while others had graduated and left us without their presence at lunch and at chapter. Even while we were in different hemispheres, my Thetas listened to my frustrations and filled my homesickness with love. Knowing they were back in the U.S. made being gone, as well as returning, so much easier. When we came back to the States, Theta love supported me in a way that was more real than ever. We saw imperfections this year, and we loved them.
Senior year, Theta gave me imagination. Seeing what my other sisters have done in the past and all that they hope to do has made me imagine possibilities for myself that I may not have believed in without Theta. I let my imagination run wild because I am not afraid of it; I have seen ups, downs, and everything in between and we have come out okay, and together. I can imagine a future with fulfilling careers, wonderful failures, and proud successes. I imagine a future with these women in it.