"Donald Trump is going to be our president. We owe him an open mind and a chance to lead."

This is what Hillary Clinton said in her concession speech and I'm so glad she said it.

So many people are posting, tweeting, and lamenting their fear, sadness, anger, and hopelessness after Trump's shocking win. Trust me, I understand. He's said and done some scary things against groups in our country that continue to fight to have a voice, and it's scary to think that perhaps all that fighting will have been for naught for the next four years.

I don't want to minimize the fear people have. It's scary to be called dangerous or less than by your country's president elect. Your fear is valid.

But, our attitude is everything. Now more than ever, we need to have hope. We need to not go into the next four years certain they will be awful, but instead remain optimistic.

Have you ever been forced by your parents to go to a party or event that you really didn't want to go to? Maybe a wedding shower for a third cousin twice removed you've never even met. You don't want to go, but your parents make you, and you go with the attitude that you'll absolutely hate it and be bored the whole time. You arrive grumpy. And, no surprises, you do have a bad time, because you convinced yourself so much that there's no way it could be fun. Your mind was made up before you even got there. Your attitude ruined your chances of having fun.

The same can be said for the next four years. Except, we're not talking about having fun at a family function. This is about our country, our culture, and our freedom. The outlook we have now can either make or break the next four years.

Don't decide now that the next four years will be detrimental to our democracy. If you do, you're setting us up for failure. Donald Trump isn't the only one with power in Washington, and there are plenty of sensible people left to try and keep the country stable. And let's not forget, the writers of our Constitution knew what they were doing. They made it hard for radical politicians to make outlandish changes. They knew a situation like this could come, and they created rules and regulations in anticipation of it.

No matter what side of the political spectrum one falls under, we all love this country, and we all are just doing what we believe is best. Now is the time not to give up, but to come together and fight for the equality and democracy we all value in this country.

Change doesn't only happen in the Oval Office. The next four years, it's up to us.

Be hopeful.