Nasiha Man

Someone asked me the other day why I joined my fraternity in college. It was a good question, and one that I hadn’t thought about in some time. My response was this, “it allowed me to be an individual, while being part of a great organization”. Now, that may not sound like much, and you may get a lot of that from other people from different fraternities, and it’s mostly true. The one thing that I love about my fraternity is that it is always true. Just about all fraternities have a ‘type’ that they are looking for, and that is fine too. Everyone fits a ‘type’, but what if different ‘types’ all come together to make the organization?

To this day, my decision to pledge Nasiha Roho Adinasi Fraternity, Inc. remains one of the best decisions of my life. It gave me a support group in college and it gave me a group of brothers that to this day are part of my life. It also gave me an education into a past that is commonly left out of History books. It gave me an education into business structure and principles that helped me greatly when I joined the professional ranks. It gave me the opportunity to not just be the face in the crowd in a large college campus. A question that I have never wondered is what did I give my fraternity? I gave and continue to give my fraternity my heart and soul! I can honestly say that I love my fraternity and my brothers to this day, and not a day goes by that I am not thankful for the bond that we have. Whether I am here in Maryland, in Georgia, in Alabama, or any other city or state that one of my brothers resides, I have a connection. I have someone to lean on, and they have someone to lean on.

I went back ‘home’ to my fraternity house in Alabama in December. I had not seen many of my brothers in 10 years, and there was a euphoric feeling just pulling up to the house. Most of us are married now, but we all managed to find our way ‘home’ for one special night around the holidays. We came from near and far, and truly it was like old times (minus some of the rowdy stuff). It was that night that gave me something I had been missing for the last decade. It was a reminder that as we grow, we must still remember our past, and the impression that we leave on people. It was something that was evident that night, and something I am very thankful for. It was also that night that reminded me why I joined the greatest fraternity on earth. While the house was filled with many of my brothers, it was also filled with friends who had never pledged, but they were just as welcomed there as if they were a brother.

As I get ready to head south next month for our fraternity’s 40th Anniversary Reunion, I just wanted to take this time to thank all of my brothers for the lifelong bond that we will always share. We may be far in distance, but always close in heart. I’m red and black until I die!