Canadian Government Executive - Volume 27 - Issue 03

MIDDLE MANAGEMENT 22 / Canadian Government Executive // May/June 2021 T he audacity to hope believes that the best is yet to come. First, we ask: Why me? Why now? Why this? Then, hope moves us forward, energizes the present, lightens the darkness, and in- creases faith. It is infectious, healing, and practical. It purifies, defends, and stabilizes during life’s storms. Hope gives us the prov- idence and strength to overcome difficulties and hardships. HOPE FLOATS BY JOHN WILKINS IT WAS THE BEST OF TIMES, IT WAS THE WORST OF TIMES, ... IT WAS THE SPRING OF HOPE, IT WAS THE WINTER OF DESPAIR, WE HAD EVERYTHING BEFORE US, WE HAD NOTHING BEFORE US, ... THE PERIOD WAS SO FAR LIKE THE PRESENT PERIOD, THAT SOME OF ITS NOISIEST AUTHORITIES INSISTED ON ITS BEING RECEIVED, ... IN THE SUPERLATIVE DEGREE OF COMPARISON ONLY. — CHARLES DICKENS (1859): A TALE OF TWO CITIES Photo: www.africanexponent.com