Like many who grew up Catholic, I strayed from the church after leaving home for college.  And, like many who strayed from the church in their 20's, I came back to it in my 30's.  I remember clearly one of the first masses I attended after selecting a new Catholic church near my home.

The church operated an elementary school on its property and while money was being raised for a new sanctuary, mass was held in the gymnasium.  Rain was  coming down as I squeezed the Acura into a spot designed for an MG.  With little room to maneuver, I shimmied my   way    out     of      the       car and placed the expensive leather of my right shoe into a two-inch puddle.  Remembering where I was and why I was there, I bit back the curse word on the tip of my tongue and slammed the door behind me.  Straightening my jacket, I took a step toward the building and was rudely yanked back by the tail of my jacket - now stuck in the driver's door.  A couple of deep, cleansing breaths and some quick work with the automatic key fob and I was on my way again.  A little wet but no worse for the wear. 

Finally in the gym, an usher offered me a choice of directions.  One lead to the metal, folding chairs facing the altar and the other to the wooden bleachers lining the outside wall.  I chose the metal.  Not long thereafter, I coveted my neighbor's wooden chairs. 

I also coveted some quiet so I could hear what was going on.  Children were talking.  Parents were shushing.  The vinyl tarp that had been laid down to protect the gym floor from moisture was crackling underfoot.  The wood floor protested loudly every time a chair slipped off the tarp.  I wanted the priest to stop the proceedings and tell everyone to behave but he didn't do it and the cacophany continued.

Although I should have been listening to the message in the readings, I was obsessed with the noise and the absurdity of trying to worship in such a setting.  "No wonder," I thought, "that people aren't excited about what is going on with the Catholic church."

But, I hung in there - not that it makes me a saint or anything - and something started to happen.  The noise receeded into the background as the homily began and I was able to relax and hear the message despite the challenges facing the one trying to deliver it.

Here was the message of that day:

- People aren't perfect.  Just God.
- We should forgive the lack of perfection in each other
- Filter out the noise in your daily life to focus on the messages
- We're all in this together and together we will prevail

So, I was reminded of that day just this past week when I was called upon to make a sales presentation for a vacationing media specialist.  I was 100% prepared . . .or so I thought.

The meeting just didn't go as smoothly as I envisioned.  My answer to a question about how one radio station compared to another seemed stilted.  A member of the panel I was facing challenged one of my key suppositions and then I felt that I couldn't really take the time to make sure she felt good about my answer because I couldn't tell if the other six panel members shared her concern or not.  For the sake of expediency, I moved on but kept looking back at her to see if she had tuned me out.

The rest of the day was kind of blah.  I didn't feel very good about myself.  What was the problem?  Am I so out of practice that I couldn't be counted on to make an effective sales presentation?  A day or two went by and I called one of the key decision makers to see what she had taken away from our meeting.

You know what?  She was really nice to me.  She said that the decision makers had all spoken about my radio stations at the end of the day.  That was unusual, she said, since they had seen 28 people in two days and it was difficult to remember what anyone had said.  Surprisingly, my key message - that our radio stations were the one-stop shop for African -American consumers - was exactly what they remembered about my presentation (although ultimately they didn't agree).

I asked about my delivery.  Had I been overbearing?  She laughed off my concerns and assured me that everything was fine.  Going on to say that we are a valued media partner, she assured me that we would be considered for all the business coming out of their shop.

Isn't it cool when people focus on your message, forgive your lack of perfection and express the desire to work together to achieve common goals? 

I think so, too. 

So, let's do it again today.