When I was in college, I was late to the game in applying for campus work study positions, so I got stuck working in the fundraising call room. While I hated every moment of my weekly shifts spent phoning alumni and asking them to donate to the school, I learned a valuable lesson in how to treat people who have the unfortunate job of making unwanted phone calls. Be kind and respectful no matter what, because that person on the other end of the line is likely no happier to be asking for your time and money than you are to be giving it. They are just doing what they have to do to get by.

Working in a call room taught me how to be a better receiver of phone calls. Now, over a decade later, working as a director of faith formation at a parish is teaching me how to be a better parent through a similar process of placing me on the receiving end of a spectrum of parental attitudes and actions.

I used to only half-jokingly say that the least savory aspect of my job in faith formation was deciding whether to cancel Sunday morning religious education classes on days with inclement weather. I guess the universe wanted to give me a dose of exposure therapy because my past year has been spent making much more difficult decisions on whether to host youth gatherings online or in person and, in the event of the latter, what requirements to make regarding masks and vaccinations. With the complicated nature of these choices, I’ll be the first to admit that the “right decision” never feels clear. I work with our parish’s pastor, staff, and pastoral council to weigh the signs of the times, the pros and cons of various paths, and the current circumstances in our town and state. Together, we make a choice that will inevitably be appreciated by some and disdained by others.

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