This week, I was planning on writing about our Kentucky governor, Matt Bevin, and how his policies for government assistance are in reality hurting those that they are supposed to help. But then as the week went on, I grew more and more weary because of another observation: our country’s future is looking both hopeful and grim.

I only recently got really into politics and keeping up with the world because I decided that I wanted to be informed and do something about the things I was reading and seeing. But being informed is exhausting and at this point, if I am completely honest, terrifying. Donald Trump is terrifying me.

The violence is terrifying me. What scares me most of all, though, is the attitude that what feels like half of America has towards this election, each other, and the country in general.

My exhaustion and weariness has grown to the point that I was not even surprised when we heard that Donald Trump openly invited Russia to hack us. But I did feel a deep sense of despair as I realized people would still vote for him.

I also am so tired of hearing people focus on the bad things that Hillary Clinton has done, apparently on purpose to help fuel conspiracy theories about her ulterior motives for our destruction.

Then you hear about Bernie Sanders supporters refusing to help the democratic party because they hate Hillary, claiming she’s a liar, a monster, and a cheater. This makes me lose all hope for America because people would rather have the alternative than vote for someone else.

Now this article is not about who you should vote for or why I am voting for who I am. Everyone is entitled to their own opinions, no matter how horrifying because this IS America after all. This article rather is to say that we need to come together and focus more on the “positives” and less on the “negatives”.

Focusing so much on a person’s past actions is no way to get anything done because you blind yourself to what they are trying to do now. Focusing on what has happened in the past, especially in a place like the White House and the situation room, is so very counterproductive. We as individuals will never truly understand what is was like to be in those situations and we have to remember that not everyone lacks a conscience. Focusing on trying to rip people apart based on what they have done (yes this pertains to any party for the sake of this article), blinds people from seeing what is here in the present. The here and now is extremely important, as we have a huge decision to make in the fall. We cannot afford to be making decisions based on all the negatives because literally no one is perfect and no one is ever going to please every single person.

That being said, we need to look at what each person is really offering. Look at how they have treated their followers, look at what they are trying to accomplish even amidst all of the name calling and accusations. Try, for a moment, to consider that not everyone is lying to you or wants to take away your rights. We need to stop being so hateful towards everything that moves and start trying to see the situation from every angle, not just the ones the media feeds us. You cannot believe everything you read on the internet, folks.

You may call me naïve or “too young” to understand, but I assure you that I understand. For the sake of this article I will not be going into detail on my own opinions, but trust me, I understand and I have been watching just as much as you have. The difference is, I feel as though even with all of the horrible things going on right now, we have a chance to really make a difference. Like President Obama said in his speech at the Democratic National Convention, “Don’t boo, vote”. We have shattered so many historical records with this election and it isn’t going to stop in November. I may be terrified of what may or may not happen, but I do still have hope against all odds. I believe that we can and we will make the right choice because this is America; we have made these choices before and will continue to make our country better in the future.