Wicked (Somerset University #2) - Ruby Vincent Page 0,72
running the house and living off campus?”
“No. Anything I can’t be there for, Blair takes care of. Couldn’t ask for a better vice president.”
“I’m very happy to hear that,” she replied. “I know you were cut off at the knees there with the addendums to the charter. It’s a relief to hear you found your way despite that.”
I blinked. Kessler came right out and said it.
If she’s going to be frank, so am I.
“Why was I cut off at the knees?” I asked. “I support the commitment to healthy living and eating. I just don’t understand why it has to be done in that way? Would it be so terrible if the girls did seventy-five minutes of Pilates?”
“I’m glad that you ask and that we now have a chance to discuss it.” Kessler got up from behind her desk. I moved my bag to let her sit next to me. “In my mission to keep things as simple as possible, I swept in, told you all to choose a president, and swept out without giving a proper explanation of your duties.
“You’re not the first group of sisters to seek changes at Sally house and you won’t be the last. It’s like you ladies said in your speeches, we have more opportunities. Better access to information. Better understanding,” she said. “It’s natural you wish to apply this to Zeta Rho and I’d never want it to be felt that we do not encourage innovation.”
“Then why?”
“Zeta Rho and Nu Alpha were created for a single reason: honoring Sally Hollenbeck. She was brave. Intelligent. Hardworking. A fighter,” she said. “The organization was tasked with defining those qualities and how they’d apply to the brothers and sisters. Specifically, what it means to be a strong, resilient fighter. In the beginning, they chose runs, jogs, drills, and the gym, and the following presidents did the same.
“Now that we’re redefining how we view health and strength, the call to introduce alternatives proved that the charter needed to be revisited and expectations clarified. Strenuous exercise is what we decided builds strong men and women and I have no doubt you all can meet the challenge.”
I bobbed my head, taking in her speech. “I understand what you’re saying. But I guess my next question is why this emphasis on being like the real Sally? What she did was heroic and she deserves to be honored, but remembering her and what she sacrificed does that. Why take it further and model everything the brothers and sisters do after her?”
The silence stretched between us.
“Did that question make me sound like an insensitive ass?”
Kessler cracked a smile. “Not at all, Valentina. The truth is you’re the first person to ask me that and it’s a fair question. We model our country in the memory of the founders, but don’t run around today with wooden teeth, enslaving people and forcing women into the kitchen. We can honor without emulating.
“In our case, we wanted the Zetas and Nus to have a purpose. Some sororities are known for their philanthropy and some fraternities are known for their legacy. From the beginning, we wished our men and women to be recognized for their effort, character, and willingness to take the hard road. To achieve that aim, we modeled our tenets on the woman who inspired them.”
“Makes sense,” I grudgingly admitted.
There I was thinking I’d have to whittle straight answers out of her and she was hitting me back with reasonable explanations for everything I swore couldn’t have one.
But I’m not done yet.
“The initiation. How do we emulate Sally Hollenbeck by digging into people’s lives and forcing them to spill their secrets for a place in the house?”
“If you ask me, we don’t.”
“Excuse me?”
Sighing, Kessler leaned back in her seat, eyes drifting over my head. “The initiation didn’t exist when I was a Sally. A Nu Alpha Theta president started it in 2005 and both houses have done it ever since. Each new president continued the practice and didn’t suggest stopping it until you.”
“Why didn’t the head organization stop it? The charter says no hazing.”
“We tried several years ago. The councils made the argument it wasn’t hazing since everyone had to share their truth. No one was singled out and what was revealed was never to be shared or used against the person. Incredibly, they were supported by the majority of the house. The members wanted it to continue, and unless we planned to monitor them twenty-four seven, we couldn’t stop it.”