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All this year, Michigan Radio has been asking people from across the state what three things they think we can all do to help the state. Today we hear from Rolf Bouma, the Director of the Center for Faith & Scholarship.

Simply put, Mr. Bouma’s three things are, “Faith, hope, and love.”

Beginning with faith, Bouma explains, “We need a restored faith, especially in the political realm.” Citing partisanship, misbehavior, abuse of the public trust, and ignoring the common good, Bouma says, “In politics, what’s going on is downright dangerous.” He continues, “To restore faith in government, I think that we’re going to have to show, as a people, as the citizens of this state, that we have some savvy in this arena.”

As to how the citizens of Michigan can help curb partisanship and restore faith in government, Bouma offers this advice: “Never believe more than 75 percent of what the politicians whom you like say, and never believe less than twenty-five percent of what the politicians whom you dislike say.”

In terms of how hope can help the state of Michigan, Mr. Bouma suggests that we take the current situation in Michigan as “an opportunity and a way for a do-over. It’s a chance to get it right.” He continues, “I think the hopeful thing here in Michigan is to embrace the challenge that the current situation poses. We get a do-over on how our cities are put together. We get a do-over on the connections between urban, suburban, rural. And, with all the bright people around here, some of them looking for work, let’s get it right.”

Demonstrating his own level of hope for Michigan, Bouma adds, “Michigan in the year 2000 was really pretty good, but I for one, I’m going to be very interested to see how much better it’s going to be fifteen years from now in 2025.”

For his third idea about how to help Michigan, Mr. Bouma urges the residents of Michigan to love their state. He says, “When we’re immersed here, we tend to take it for granted. It’s just home.”

But Bouma wants Michiganders to remember all there is to love, reminding us, “If someone stands at the Mackinac Bridge, they are within four hundred miles of twenty percent of the world’s fresh water. Here in Michigan we’ve got the southern temperate forests and warm-water lakes. We’ve got the northern boreal forests and cold-water lakes and streams. We have the savannahs and grasslands. We have the orchards. We have the farms. We’ve got the old logging towns. And so, the least I think that we can do, as citizens, is to love this place that is, well, so lovable.”