I think it's safe to say that between the madness of this past election, the untimely deaths of numerous artists and actors, and everything else that made this past year stand out, we're all about ready to say goodbye to 2016. I'm not saying 2016 was the worst year the world has ever been faced with, but what I am saying is that 2016 has definitely been unpredictable, unreliable, and erratic. I'm here to remind you that even if things didn't go exactly the way you wanted them to over the past year, you shouldn't worry just yet.

To start, I know that there are many Americans who believe the wrong candidate won the presidency. This past election was full of conflict, turmoil, and anxiety over the qualities the candidates both maintained and lacked. The fact of the matter is, there is no scenario in which Donald Trump won't be our president soon. The best we can do as Americans who want peace and unity in our country is to, as Hillary Clinton said herself, give him the chance to lead our nation. There is absolutely nothing wrong with standing up for what you believe in, but he hasn't even taken office yet, and nobody can predict what exactly he is going to do over the course of the next four years. Whether he will be a good president or a bad president, no one knows yet. The best we can do right now, as 2016 comes to a close, is give him a chance.

On top of a businessman/reality TV star becoming president, we had to say goodbye to quite a few celebrities that were cherished and admired around the world. Most recently, the iconic mother-daughter duo of Debbie Reynolds and Carrie Fisher passed away within one day of each other, and to the surprise of all of their fans. Legendary musicians like David Bowie, Prince, and Leonard Cohen died unexpectedly as well. It was a firm reminder to me personally that every day we live is a gift that could be taken away at any moment. Not a single day should be taken for granted.

As for my year, I won't bore you to tears by going into depth about the little things that eventually turned into big things, and how those big things shaped 2016 for me. All I can say is that I really couldn't have predicted anything that happened even when I thought I had all the answers.

I think the best anyone can hope to do is take all the lessons we learned in 2016, even the ones we didn't want to learn, and use them to make 2017 a better place. And for everyone who thinks 2016 was the worst it will ever be: once you hit rock bottom, there's nowhere to go but up, right?