“The power of the fish is in the water”“The power of the politician is in the people”— African ProverbsThe above was taught to me by a guest worker who resides in Devonshire. The lesson he conferred that day was clear and succinct: to be an effective politician, one has to immerse themselves into their people and the communities they represent.No different from what fish have to do.Today, I would like to reach out to Devonshire and Smith’s residents. We hope that this finds you and your families in good health and spirits, despite our ongoing Covid-19 health and economic realities.The past six months have been something that none of us could have imagined or have been fully prepared for. However, as Bermudians, we did what we do best — we stuck together and helped each other in every way needed.Despite the numerous and unforeseen challenges, we all, I repeat all, rose to the occasion and have much to be proud of. Yet, we still have much work to do to help our economy recover.Not only to recover, but additionally to provide affordable healthcare, increased Bermudian business ownership and more of our young people in the technical trades.Parish pride projectPost-lockdown, we have recommenced our weekly clean-ups. Over the past month we have worked in the following areas:• South Shore Road• Devon Spring Road• Devon Spring Lane• Middle Road• Green Acres• Jubilee Road• Rocklands Estate On Saturday, we will be out again clearing the cut between Green Acres and Devon Spring Road. For those wishing to assist, the meeting point is at the Barn and we will be working from 9am until noon.As usual, water and refreshments will be provided.In closing, the road ahead is long and will have lots of bumps along the way. As Bermudians, we will have to continue to work together, throughout both the tough times and tough decisions that we will face as a country.Always feel free to contact me.• Christopher Famous is the government MP for Devonshire East (Constituency 11). You can reach him on WhatsApp at 599-0901 or e-mail at carib_pro@yahoo.com