Today is the day. For months, for years it seems, we have been inundated with debates, angry twitter feeds, and polarizing Facebook discussions. What I have come to realize however, is that tomorrow is not the end. The Trump/Clinton/”I’ll vote for anyone else but them” arguments will not cease once a new President has been elected. This election has started a discussion in our country that will absolutely prevail.

No matter the outcome of this election, a large majority of Americans will not be happy. That is the unfortunate truth. This has been one of the most polarizing election years in recent history, and people are not soon going to forget it. There is a definite mindset of “we’re screwed either way” among a large amount of Americans, which is really disheartening to think about. Many of us have lost faith in America, but the fact that we are self-aware enough to recognize our own faults says something about us as a people. We are lucky enough to live in a place where we are allowed to openly dislike presidential candidates, and even make fun of them online and on national television. Programs like Saturday Night Live openly make fun of the American political system, but also serve as a medium to inform us of different viewpoints, and to put the whole process into perspective.

This whole election process has seemed like a joke at times- the absurdity of commentary and the number of scandals have made great fodder for satire- but it is important to recognize at the end of the day that this is real. Adding some lighthearted humor to this election has made it bearable, but now it is time to take the future of our country a little more seriously. Even if just for today, set aside the jokes and take a good hard look at the candidates presented to us. Now is the time to make a decision, whatever that decision may be. Tomorrow when we wake up, the future President of the United States will no longer be a hypothetical concept.

Someone will win, and that person will be in charge of our country for the next four years. Today is not the end, not even close. We will disagree with many of the policies and the morals of our next president, but as long as we keep talking about it we are doing all that we can. It is not the apocalypse, although it may seem so, it is merely another chapter in the story of America. We will deal with it in any way we can, whether that is through humor, or standing up to actively debate the way our country is run.

Do not stop talking once the election ends; keeping the discussion going is the only way we can really change our country as an American people. The first and most important step, however, is to vote, so get out to the polls and have a say as to what kind of America you want to wake up to tomorrow.