Hope springs from realism and resolve, not ignorance of fact and wishful thinking.

Hope in politics and community should come from the clear assessment of circumstances and commitment to improvement.

Hopeful politics should never mean that we simply beat a drum loud enough to drown out criticism and concern. Hopeful agendas first grapple with reality, then offer solutions that inspire.

We don't need more politicians who will simply lie us forward, deflecting criticism until we hit a wall. I'm an optimist, but also a realist.

Everything is not okay….

Hopeful politics will never cloud my eyes to my constituents -- families burdened by health care shortages that mean they wait years for treatment, who lose livelihoods and even homes while they care for their loved ones in an absence of support.

They are parents and families in crisis, inside a system made dysfunctional through cuts….

What I do hope for is that we will restore a basic principle to the governance of this province….

That is that B.C. should work for B.C., that the benefit of this great province should be spread to all of its people and to the forests, water and air from whence it came.

Rebuilding the social contract ensuring that local resources benefit local communities would be hopeful. Instead, we have seen public interest removed from resource management.

Investing in literacy strategies that address our immigrant populations and first nations would be hopeful because even a one percent gain in literacy rates equates to a $1.6 billion increase in our gross domestic product potential.

Instead we have seen widespread cuts to community-based literacy programs so that now we spend the least of any province.

Providing child care would be hopeful, since Quebec, the only province that does, has the lowest skills shortage and the highest participation of women in the trades.

Instead, B.C. was the only province that didn't stand up to the federal Conservative cuts and restore child care funding.

Look at the facts, face the truth, grapple with the issues and work together toward solutions. That is truly hopeful politics.

Above all, we should be good custodians. Our public health and public education systems are what have allowed us to be the competitive force we are.

The B.C. Liberal government has shown that it doesn't believe in them, so how could they possibly manage them to success?

These systems are not the playthings of an elected government, theirs for experiment. Our first obligation is as stewards.

Here's to hoping.