Let me begin by openly admitting that, until recently, I was not 100 percent “feeling the Bern.” Being a young woman, the idea of having a female president was trumping (pun intended) a lot of other factors in determining which candidate I would support as we headed into the 2016 election. Most of my friends are avid Sanders supporters. My Facebook newsfeed is peppered with posts about his alleged impending "political revolution." My stance for quite a while was that as long as a Republican wasn’t in office (apologies to my conservative friends), things would be OK. Gradually, through, watching debates, reading articles and closely following each campaign, I started leaning more and more toward Bernie. Now, I can say after attending his rally in Louisville, Kentucky, I #feelthebern more than ever. I believe Bernie Sanders should be our next president.

Here’s what happened to make me see the light.

Any political rally is a marathon of a day and requires some significant commitment. You’d better be ready to wait in a few never-ending lines, deal with heavy security and eventually get squished by fellow supporters all straining their necks to see the presidential hopeful at the podium. It was some of the most fun I’ve ever had. I headed out at 11 a.m. from Cincinnati, Ohio, to Louisville with the most enthusiastic Bernie supporter I know. After a quick lunch, we went over to the park where the rally was being held. At 2 p.m., we were facing an already lengthy line, and this was five hours before the rally was scheduled to begin. However, we were smart to get there early because before long, the end of the line wasn’t even visible.

You might think that standing in a line for five hours anywhere sounds miserable, but this was arguably the best part of the entire experience. Running up and down the line were Bernie supporters, local democratic politicians, news stations and a guy giving out free hugs. Food trucks parked up and down the street, tons of tents were set up selling Bernie merchandise, people from all walks of life surrounded us. I felt like I was headed into a baseball game or concert. The energy was awesome. There was no one "type" of Bernie supporter. I was shocked at how different everyone was, yet how we were all connected by our enthusiasm for one man’s vision for America. It was a liberal, progressive, eclectic, interesting group, and waiting in line with them was refreshing and exciting. There were babies and “hippies,” businessmen and stay-at-home moms, war veterans and college students. While I was swarmed by the myriad of diverse demographics, I felt strangely like I was with “my people” — this was so despite the fact that they were all complete strangers.

We moved slowly, but before we knew it, we were being ushered through a security check and into a beautiful park right on the water. We were there for about an hour and a half, all packed together, waiting with bated breath for Bernie to arrive. There was even speculation he might parachute in, but unfortunately, that didn’t happen. We were pretty close to the stage, a big bonus for getting there early, and we were crowded by “Feel the Bern” signs and fellow Bernie lovers. There was such a cool vibe! I don’t know how else to describe it. Somebody started the wave, Bernie chants happened every few minutes or so, people grew very excited, profanities were shouted, the smell of weed wafted through the air (not that I know what weed smells like), the LGBT community was out in force, there were a surprising number of Bernie babies who seemed equally as thrilled as their parents to be a part of this experience and Simon and Garfunkel music was blasting through the park. We were ready for Bernie. We were #feelingtheBern.

Then, he arrived. The only thing I can equate this moment to is what it must feel like to be a 13-year-old girl seeing Taylor Swift at Madison Square Garden for the first time. Everyone went crazy. This man is loved. Seven thousand people shouting, “Feel the Bern!” in unison is simply an overwhelming and incredible experience. He looked great as he waved to the crowd, appearing exceptionally dapper in his classic gray suit. Is that weird to say? I don’t really care if it is. Bernie looked fierce. And then, he spoke.

To say Bernie Sanders is an inspirational and motivational speaker would be a major understatement. This man knows how to work a crowd. Granted, we were also a pretty rowdy group, but he couldn’t get a word out without cheers interrupting him constantly. Sen. Sanders spoke for nearly an hour, covering everything from women’s health and the pay gap to his plan for immigration reform — which included two undocumented immigrants coming forward and getting warm hugs from Bernie himself. Sanders focused heavily on economic issues, his plan for free public education, raising the minimum wage to $15 per hour and of course, universal healthcare, which clearly struck a chord with the majority of the crowd. In fact, his comments on universal healthcare got the most applause of the evening, which is impressive, given the number of enthusiastic outbursts and disruptions.

He capped off his speech by encouraging the people of Kentucky to get to the polls and vote in their primary, which is on May 17. The applause and cheering continued for several minutes after his exit. Finally, exhausted from its own enthusiasm, the crowd began to disperse.

Later that evening, on the car ride home, the news that Bernie had won Indiana popped up on my phone, followed by the news that Cruz had dropped out of the race, essentially meaning that Trump would be the Republican nominee. During his speech, Bernie reminded us that in every poll, he decidedly has a better shot at winning the White House over Trump than his Democratic opponent Hillary Clinton does. I believe that. I really do. Bernie has a shot, and I hope he proves all of those who doubt him wrong. Bernie is "not throwing away his shot." (I had to toss a Hamilton reference in here somewhere.)

Bernie has beliefs. Bernie has had the same beliefs for 20 years, and they have never wavered. Bernie has a true vision for America. He wants to see major positive changes, and it is my opinion that he can make these changes happen if he is elected. Despite having the lead in the majority of online polls on the Democratic presidential debate, he continues to be jilted by mainstream media. This is one of the reasons Democrats think Hillary is our best bet at beating Trump. However, do your research, and you’ll find that the only real Democrat running for POTUS is Sanders. Here’s what I learned at his rally from our main man himself.

Socialism is not a nasty word. To quote Bernie, “Democratic socialism means that we must create an economy that works for all, not just the very wealthy. Democratic socialism means that we must reform a political system in America today which is not only grossly unfair but, in many respects, corrupt.” I don’t understand how you can argue with that. He’s right if you are for reforming our system.

Bernie’s foreign policy is humane and absolutely legitimate. Thank goodness somebody can rationally speak about this important issue. His stance on foreign policy is wonderful disparity from the Republican Candidates and their savage, blood thirsty ideals and also the equivocal, mysterious foreign policy that Hillary presents, for that matter.

Sanders is the only candidate to even mention climate change, which if you’ve been following this controversial topic, is now a decidedly real thing according to the consensus of the scientific community.

Sen. Sanders is also the only candidate whose stance on gay rights has never, ever wavered. He has consistently voted against anti-LGBT bills, such as "Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell." He has supported the community as long as he has been in the political limelight and before he was involved in politics at all. The same goes for his stance on women’s rights, openly pro-choice and actively against the defunding of Planned Parenthood and any possible regression of women’s issues.

Finally, I learned that Bernie cares. He cares about America, and further than that, he cares about Americans. These are two very different things. If you’re running to be POTUS, you obviously care about America— enough to be its leader in any event. However, I’d like to argue that Bernie is the only candidate who appears to actually care about the American people. He focuses largely on middle-class citizens and poverty, which unfortunately is what makes up the vast majority of America. The 1 percent is not America. Americans are America, and 1 percent seems awfully minuscule to me to justify primarily catering to that group of people. Bernie agrees with me on that one.

So, here’s the thing: Bernie utterly rocked my world. I urge you to go out there and attend a rally — even if you don’t support Bernie, go support your candidate. I promise, you will feel more invested in the upcoming election. You will have a better understanding of the issues at hand and know exactly what you’re voting for. You’ll learn about yourself and perhaps have a small epiphany regarding your personal beliefs, at least that’s what happened for me. I was scorched by the Bern in Louisville, Kentucky. I #feeltheBern. I am ready for a political revolution. Aren’t you?