I am still getting the hang of the blogging thing, & figuring out all the little features. So I just discovered that I can put some of your blogs as links on my blog! Hope that's all right--if you'd prefer not to have yours over there on the right, let me know & I'll take it right off!

Do we have mutual friends that blog that I don't have represented over there? ----> I love to check out what other people post, so please let me know!

I enjoyed the "pink" discussion we had on Jen Gorham's blog the other day. For those of you who don't know, I was a member of the Chi Omega Pi social club at Harding...at least until I got married! My mom teased me about my choice of social club because the colors were pink, green & white--the green & white I could handle, but I had rebelled against pink since the time I was able to dress myself. Okay, starting in high school, I guess. Maybe middle school. I guess I didn't really want to be a girl. Most of my friends were guys, I dressed in baggy, ugly clothes that came from the men's side of the department store, & I didn't do much dating (that wasn't by choice, though!). But ChiOs were the gals for me, so I was hooked! And pink soon became one of my favorite colors. You'll notice a few posts back (Aug. 29)that I am wearing a pink shirt--a pink shirt that was chosen by my boys for Mother's Day, because they know pink is my favorite! Pink is now my way to find femininity in an increasingly male world that is my own. I love my pink rose bush, my pink doodads around the house, and I have more pink clothing than any other color in my closet. What do I tell Dan when he isn't sure what would be a good gift for my birthday? Why, I tell him anything pink will do the trick! Of course!

And why am I obsessing about pink today? Well, as I mentioned, some of us old ChiOs were having a discussion about pink on Jen Gorham's blog the other day. It was funny that all the people responding to her post about getting a pink phone were from ChiOs. I'm sure she has other friends & family of the non-ChiO persuasion that read her blog, but pink meant something to us, so we were the ones that commented.

Let me tell you a little about what the ChiOs meant & still mean to me (by the way, ChiOs is a registered copyrighted whatever sorority, & we have no official association with them--we always had to say that, because we weren't really supposed to call ourselves "ChiOs"!). The ChiOs represented a mix of people, we weren't the athletic club like our red friends, we weren't the pretty, upperclass (red & black) club, we weren't the fun-loving (although some of us were), pretty purple club. We were looking for more of a spiritual group of women. Not that there weren't spiritual girls in the other clubs, so please don't get offended. That was just the bond we had, as opposed to being bonded by sports or whatever. I hope I'm explaining this okay! Anyway, from my first club retreat, to the service projects with the Sunshine School, to the fantastic devotionals and functions we had together, it was such a great, growing, learning experience for me.

Molly was my Impact group leader. She was the very first upperclassman I met, & the very first ChiO I met. And I thought, "whatever club she's in, that's what I want to be in!"
Laura was the second ChiO I met, & I thought, "whatever club she's in, that's what I want to be in!"
At the club openhouse, I spent the most time with the ChiOs. I met Mandy, who was dating (or engaged to) a guy from my home congregation. She introduced me to several others. Probably including Jen (my "big sister") & Deidre (her roommate, I think, who became my other unofficial "big sister"). I probably also met Leslie & Anna, who later became close friends of mine. Rachel, Martha, Marie, Becky, & so many others later were in my pledge class. After visiting other clubs & feeling like I didn't quite fit in with them, I went back to ChiOs. And the rest is history! My pledge class bonded quickly & tightly after making it through induction week together. And the club was like a big family for me.

I have a horrible memory, so I don't remember a whole lot of specific memories. Maybe some of you ChiOs can share some with me? I do know one thing: every time I think about Chi Omega Pi, I have a warm, pleasant feeling in my heart (& I sing what I can remember of our club song). My parents provided me with a safe place to find my wings, & ChiOs really encouraged me to take flight.

What is something special from a past event or phase in your life? What color means something to you? What is a fragrance that evokes memories of a loved one? Do you have a favorite movie because it was what you saw on your very first date? Do you have a favorite restaurant because you used to go there with your family for everyone's birthday? Make memories with your college friends, with your young church group, with your growing family!

And go make a special memory today.

:)