This week has been…trying, to say absolute least. I’d probably classify it as more of a disaster, but that’s beside the point at the moment. Between the semester quickly coming to an end, the results of the presidential election on Tuesday, and the repercussions of said election, we have all had a long week. And a long four years to come. I’ve been taking some time the last few days to appreciate all of the people in my life who, regardless of the choice they made on Tuesday, have reached out to see how I’m doing. One of the best things you can do for someone is to check up on them because a lot of people are in a rough place right now. There has been a spike in the number of hate crimes across the United States since Tuesday night (here is a Huffington Post article and here is an SPLC article about it). Particularly hate crimes geared towards the black, immigrant, and Muslim communities. Which is not surprising, but nonetheless still disgusting.

We all need to start caring more about everyone, especially right now. We need to spread love, not hate, which is a cliché but also very true. We need to be open to having some very tough and probably incredibly uncomfortable discussions. We need to accept not only what others are saying, but also accept when we are wrong. Acknowledge the privileges that we have and actively look for ways to help others secure those same privileges. Appreciate the people in your life who are working to make a difference and try to educate those who have not had the same experiences as you.

At this point, experience, compassion, and empathy are everything when it comes to understanding the overwhelming nature of the issues at hand. So if someone doesn’t fully understand them or doesn’t see them in quite the same way that you do, work together to understand each other’s side of what is going on. Work to protect the rights of others, not work to take them away. Because the way that we’re going about everything right now is honestly a complete disaster.

Our country is incredibly divided right now. And a divided nation will only lead to trouble. Now more than ever, it is important to think about how your choices will affect other people. Imagine yourself in someone else’s shoes for once and really consider the things you say to others. Words are strong, they can have a bigger impact than you know.

You can whine all you want about millennials being “too sensitive” or “not understanding the issues,” but at this point those arguments are invalid. I’ve heard that too much lately and it doesn’t help anyone. All it does is create more of a divide between people. Now is the time to step up to the plate and work to reunify this fractured country. Because unless everyone starts to work together, we stand no chance of making any kind of progress.