Even if you’re not in a sorority, you probably know the ups and downs of Big/Little Week — aka when new chapter members get a “secret” big sister (or brother, depending on the chapter) who showers them with gifts, love and mystery clues all week before revealing to them their identity. It’s a ton of fun, but from the perspective of an overthinking new member, the secrecy can get pretty stressful. Here are seven stages every “little” goes through during Big/Little Week!
1. Present Overload
“OMG, is it my birthday?!”
You’re casually-yet-not-so-casually searching for your name among all the baskets in the house, and then suddenly you spot it. T-shirts and candy: a girl’s true best friends. You keep it cool, as if you’re not about to scarf down all the snacks and change into your new Greek gear the moment you get back to your dorm. And then you remember it’s only the first day. Get ready to be showered with gifts for a whole week! Thanks, Big!
2. Detective Mode
After seeing the canvases your big gave you, the only clue as to who she may be is that she has good tastes. Time to take what you know and scour Instagram, super sleuth. If you put this much effort into finding what X equaled in Pre Calc, you’d have a perfect GPA. Instead, you journey down this rabbit hole with little success: guess you’ll just have to wait until reveal to meet this generous angel!
3. Intruder Alert
Now you wish you’d made your bed this morning. Your big sis entered your room and left you a basket of goodies… which means your roommate must know who it is! It takes everything in your power not to interrogate her, because the less you know, the more fun the reveal will be. Time to sink your teeth into the new junk food and distract yourself until the fast-approaching reveal!
4. She Wants Me To Wear What?
A cutesy text comes in with a bizarre request. Looks like you’re going to be walking to the house tomorrow in Birkenstocks and khakis for whatever reason. You know they have a theme in mind, but what could it possibly be? *Frantically texts everyone in dorm hallway to see if they have knee high socks you can borrow last minute.*
5. Super Sratty
Let’s face it: standing out there on the lawn in front of a girl popping out of a cardboard box is the kind of thing GDI’s make fun of sororities for. And you absolutely love it. You can’t wait to hug the girl who’s been spending all this time making you feel special. Now’s your chance to make her feel special too!
6. Spam Your Fans
It’s photo shoot time. You have to make your internet debut as a duo the coolest ever, and the whole pledge class is going to be playing for the camera. Angles, filters, poses: everyone’s America’s Next Top Model for the next hour.
7. Family Bonding
But you didn’t just get a big: you joined a family! Meeting up with your GBig and GGBig, you see a whole squad of support and friendship. Putting yourself out there is tough, but now you have a group of girls who have been there and done that who can show you the ropes.
Get ready to have a blast and make friends for life!
Cover photo courtesy of the writer, Catie Schwartzman.