100 Posts

I realized earlier this week that I recently posted my 100th essay to this blog.  Most of them are authored by me, but several others were contributed by people I respect and admire.  Time has moved so quickly, that I couldn't believe it at first.

This blog has been a labor of love for the last four years.  When I started it, there weren't that many blogs devoted to fraternity/sorority life.  I had just finished my brief tenure at the North American Interfraternity Conference and was trying out a new career path.  I wanted to stay connected to Greek life, and I had some opinions and thoughts to share.  Thus, I decided to give this blog a shot.  My very first post, Justifying Fraternity, is still one of my favorites.  

From that point forward, I decided that I would try to not only write column-style posts that gave my opinion, but also more creative expressions of my belief in fraternity.  I even tried a video essay called Crazy, that may have been my first widely-shared post.

I don't pretend to think I'm writing the Huffington Post here or anything.  But it has been encouraging to see how many people have reacted to the writings here.  I was especially surprised by a post that began as scribbles on an airplane flight and became the most popular one - A Woman's Touch. Thank you to anyone who liked, shared, commented on, or simply read something on this blog.  You've made this a whole lot of fun.

I hope to keep doing this for a long time, although I expect more guest writers will be needed in the future.  Of course, that was the original intent as well (hence the word "Fraternal" in the title).  So, please consider contributing.

I thought it would be fun to celebrate this milestone by sharing my own personal top five favorite posts.  

5. Greetings From the Back Row - I had a day to kill in San Francisco, and was too lazy to walk far from my hotel.  I settled into a local coffee shop and the idea and the words just began to flow.  I couldn't wait to publish this one.

4. It's Time to End Pledging - I don't believe in being provocative just for the sake of it.  I truly believe what this essay says and it has probably been my most controversial post.  I love how it created a spirited debate. 

3. Seeking the Truth from Fraternity - This post reflects a shift in my own thinking about the power of fraternity and that fraternity is a movement intent on creating a better world.

2. Thank You and Your Welcome - I always wanted to put this concept in writing, and it just hit me one night that I should do it in the first person.  I chose a sorority perspective because so many posts here are heavy on fraternity.

1.  ENOUGH - Maybe I chose this as #1 because it was the most time-consuming to create (by a mile).  I spent months on this.  The message still speaks to me, especially because I wasn't a very courageous leader in my undergraduate years.

Thank you again for choosing to read this blog.  I'm honored that you do.  I believe in fraternity and as long as I can add to the conversation about its future, I'll keep writing.  And I hope you will too.