What a time to be alive. Without a doubt, the time period we're living in now will end up in textbooks 20 years from now.

And I'll be able to say I lived and experienced all of it.

I think many of us can all agree that the political divide between Democrats and Republicans has never been greater. It seems that each and every topic up for debate has dragged us all farther and farther apart from agreement.

This really makes having a civil conversation with someone from an opposing party to be quite the challenge. Or so, I thought.

Now let me fill you in a little bit on myself. I am a registered Democrat, one of the few in my large family. When I first told my family that I was a registered Democrat, my grandfather (jokingly) called me the next "black sheep" of the family and my father now calls me his "hippie child." (Don't worry, I think they still love me.)

From the time I've registered, I've had countless political conversations with family and friends. Some have ended good, others not so much.

In this day and age, having a political conversation can be a risky task. Touch a soft spot, and you're pretty destined to have a full on verbal brawl. Trust me, it's happened to me a lot.

It's as if we've forgotten what a political conversation is all about. To me, it's about sharing my opinion all while listening to the opposing side with an open heart. Regardless of a difference of opinion, we're all human here.

It's OK to have a different perspective, but it's also important to not disrespect anyone else's perspective.

I've had lots of doubt in our society and our level of respect for others since the day I've registered. Ever since Trump was elected President, I've noticed that the level of respect between the parties is sinking faster and faster as each day passes.

A little while ago, I was placed into a situation that completely restored my faith.

After a night of fun with some of my closest friends, we somehow ended up placed with a group of Military guys that I thought gave the persona of extreme conservatives. At first, I had no interest at all in engaging in political conversation with them, due to the fear of it leading in no positive direction.

But then one of the boys started asking for my opinion on certain issues that were important to me. I gave my opinion while they listened carefully to what I was saying and then they politely told me all about their perspective on the issue. The conversation never got too heated and in the end, each of us did seem to understand what the other was saying.

It just really proves that you can't ever judge a book by it's cover.

While a lot of people still do have trouble respecting others opinions, these guys seriously proved that it's still possible to hold a level of respect during a political discussion.

We could all learn a lot from them.

I sure did.