Skip to main content

“I am a Canadian, free to speak without fear, free to worship in my own way, free to stand for what I think right, free to oppose what I believe wrong, or free to choose those who shall govern my country. This heritage of freedom I pledge to uphold for myself and all mankind.” ~~ John G. Diefenbaker

ADAM OLSEN -- So here I am back at it. Refreshed and reinvigorated with a keen sense of purpose to serve the people and place we love


A former boss of mine would always remind us as we were heading out the door to go on vacation that we should actually vacate. It’s encouragement to leave the work behind, not just the office. Step away physically and mentally. Break the routine and clear the cache.

The internet turns up a couple of definitions for “vacation.” The first is “a holiday” the second is “the action of leaving something one previously occupied.”

This work can be all consuming. It’s quite easy for the work to overwhelm me and if I let it, work can become the only thing that occupies me.

I remember when I was being recruited to run in the 2008 Central Saanich municipal election, I was told that the job was about 15 hours a week. Well, it has always been way more than that. Being an MLA is even way more than being in municipal politics because I dive deep into things and care deeply about people and the future of our world.

Ever since my first election, I have been learning how to assign the appropriate amount of urgency or priority on the work or an issue. Especially since each one flows to me and through me with exigency.

Reset, refresh, reinvigorate
For the past couple of weeks, I’ve been at home with Emily, Silas, Ella and Tui. It wasn't a lavish holiday, just quality time with the people I love in the place I love.

While I’ve continued to pay attention to the world around me and write about it each day, the most important thing I’ve done is calm my mind, stretch my body, and fill my spirit with the joy and love of my family. I’m humbled by my blessed and privileged existence and will use this understanding to fuel my work to create a more just, equitable, loving, kind and compassionate society.

On Sunday afternoon, my calendar notifications on my device began to remind me that it’s my vacation that was the thing that was most recently occupying me — the thing that I was soon to be vacating.

So here I am back at it. Refreshed and reinvigorated with a keen sense of purpose to serve the people and place we love, our home in the most amazing place on Earth, the Salish Sea.

Thank you for giving me the space to take a little break. I look forward to connecting with you!


Adam Olsen ... is a Green Party Member of the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia for Saanich North and the Islands. Born in Victoria, BC in 1976, Adam has lived, worked and played his entire life on the Saanich Peninsula.

He is a member of Tsartlip First Nation (W̱JOȽEȽP), where he and his wife, Emily, are raising their two children, Silas and Ella.
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

“4.5 million hectares of forest lands have burned since 2023, and the best they can do is point to a 90-hectare block being salvaged?” ~~ Ward Stamer, Kamloops-North Thompson MLA

Today, BC NDP forest Minister Ravi Parmar made this pronouncement; ‘Removing red tape has sped up permitting, allowing for more wood to be salvaged, quicker’. 4.5 million hectares of forest lands have burned since 2023, and the best they can do is point to a 90-hectare block?    ~~ BC Conservative Forests Critic Ward Stamer While acknowledging the NDP government has recognized improvements were needed in permitting and accessing burnt fibre in a timely fashion, the reality is, they are barely making a dent in the problem.  This government's recognition that only seven percent of pulp mill fibre came from burnt timber in 2024-25, quite simply put, is a failure. And the recent announcement, just three weeks ago, that the Crofton Pulp Mill would be permanently closing, is proof of that.     Instead of Premier David Eby’s government addressing core issues being faced by British Columbia’s forest industry, they are doing little more than manipulating the facts, ...
1 comment
Read more

A message from BC Conservative MLA Ward Stamer, and the Kamloops – North Thompson Riding Association

2025 was a busy first year. As a Caucus, we worked very hard to defeat Bills 14 and 15, legislation which allows the provincial government to move ahead without environmental assessments on renewable projects, and that also allows cabinet to build infrastructure projects without getting approval from local municipal governments. This is not acceptable to your BC Conservative caucus, and we will continue to press this government for open and transparent projects in the future.  Two things we had success in were having the first Private Members bill passed in over 40 years. The first was Jody Toors Prenatal and Post Natal Care bill, and then there was my private members Bill M217 Mandatory Dashcams in commercial vehicles (passed second reading unanimously and is heading to Committee in February). Regrettably, much of the legislation passed by the government was little more than housekeeping bills, or opportunities to strengthen the ability of Cabinet Ministers to bypass the BC legi...
Post a Comment
Read more

Wildfire waste plan torched -- Forestry critic Stamer calls BC's wildfire salvage rate 'a failure'

Claims that BC is making progress salvaging wildfire-damaged timber are masking deeper problems in the forest sector, the province’s forestry critic says. Last week, BC’s Ministry of Forests said mills in the province processed more than one million cubic metres of wildfire chips in 2024-25, up from 500,000 cubic metres in 2023 and representing about seven per cent of all processed wood. Kamloops-North Thompson BC Conservative MLA Ward Stamer said those claims of progress ignore the reality that only a fraction of burned timber is being used ... CLICK HERE for the full story
Post a Comment
Read more

Labels

Show more