Allen Hunt: Wear at tie. Try it.

BY ALLEN HUNT

My most memorable moment of 2011 may well have come on the day I spent in a metro Atlanta traffic court - with my daughter (but that's another story). When I say a day, I mean the whole day. Hundreds of people. Courtrooms were too small to hold the offenders so people were lined up around the outside of the building for hours in the hot sun just to get in - to face justice. I try to make it a habit not to visit traffic court very often, and now I remember why!

Two important lessons emerged for me in this experience:

1) Wearing a coat and tie makes a difference. In the crowd, I counted three men (myself included thanks to my dad's lessons installed early in my life) wearing a coat and tie. It never ceases to amaze me how differently you are treated when you are dressed nicely. Multiple people asked me throughout the day if I was an attorney (answer = NO!). But the sheriff's deputies looked far more kindly on those of us in suits than on those who needed to be asked to take their ball caps off. Same trick works at the bank and at the airport too. Wear a tie. Try it.

2) Patience and humility do not come easily. These two virtues are not my strengths. But a few hours in line, in the sun, and in a courtroom can be your friend. Our judicial system is a great leveler - traffic court reminds you that we are all created equal (and miserable) in the eyes of lady justice and her authorities. I do not particularly like to be taught patience and humility. But I have to admit, they are good for the soul.

About Allen Hunt Allen Hunt is a former Senior Pastor of an evangelical mega-church. He became Catholic in 2008 and now partners with Matthew Kelly to serve as the Vice-President for Strategy and Content at the Dynamic Catholic Institute. Allen is a speaker, writer, and radio host on News Talk WSB in Atlanta. He is the author of Confessions of a Mega-Church Pastor: How I Discovered the Hidden Treasures of the Catholic Church.