I know by now you’re probably fed up with seeing things about the election, but please just hear me out.

This week we experienced the presidential election of a lifetime. Some are thrilled about the outcome, while others are devastated. It feels as though our country is split down the middle. However, we are not as divided as it appears.

Have Your Voice Heard: Become an Odyssey Creator

I personally do not support Trump. I was appalled by his victory and find it no reason to celebrate. I spent the election wondering how anyone could stand by someone who is so openly racist, unprofessional, and sexist, among other things. I don’t think Hillary would have been a great choice, but I thought that anyone was better than Trump.

Then, the morning after the results, I was scrolling through Facebook and I happened to notice a post from a friend who had voted for Trump. They described how upset they were at Trump’s victory, despite the fact that they had voted for him. They were deeply saddened that it had come down to what it had. At first I was very confused. How did this make any sense?

Then it hit me: even though we had voted for different people, our views were the same.

We both had clear visions of what we want for our country. We both saw 2 candidates that were not fit to serve the United States and did not fully reflect the ideas for success we wanted. We both saw one candidate who was so morally, disgustingly wrong that we felt compelled to vote for the other out of fear. We both were distraught that the choice had come down to what it had, and we had to vote how we saw fit.

Upon reading my friend’s post, I discovered a glimmer of humanity between the mourning and the gloating. Our nation may feel divided right now, but just because we did not vote for the same person does not mean we stand on separate grounds. To my disbelief, the whole time we had the same way of thinking. Our political views were different, but the views in our hearts were the same.

Our votes may divide us, but especially in this time we need to remember that we are all human. We all must live with the consequences of this election, whether they bring us forward or set us back. We need to keep it in our hearts that we, members of the same human race, are what can truly make America great.