I recently read a quote online that really stuck with me. I can't remember the exact wording, but the gist of it was that fear is what creates and breeds hatred and violence. It makes sense to me. One of the big problems in our country right now is hatred and fear of different types of people. Some police, for whatever reason, fear black people and in turn, black people now fear police. Because of terrorist attacks and groups like ISIS, many Americans have begun to unjustly fear Muslims. And now we have a country full of riots, violence, hate speech, polarization, and we are divided. Especially with this election coming up, hate is spewing from both ends. No one seems to be able to respectfully disagree with the other side. Everyone says they HATE the opposite party or candidate, or that they are afraid of them. Deathly afraid. Terrified. I very rarely see posts that say someone disagrees with Trump's policies or dislikes the way he speaks about people. Instead I see people comparing him to Hitler, claiming they fear for their life if he gets elected, saying they are appalled that anyone would vote for him and that if you are, they take personal offense to it. I saw a post on Tumblr the other day that said "If you're voting for Donald Trump, I just assume you want me dead."

Why is this okay? What is with the fear mongering and drama? Posts like this continue to hype up the drama, create divide, intensify conflict. The more you fear Donald Trump, or anyone else, the more power you give them. And the more you breed hatred. If you fear someone, like Trump, you begin to feel anger and hate towards him. Likewise, Donald Trump and his supporters sense this and start to feel hate towards you. I'm not saying that some people aren't inherently hateful already-you may think Donald Trump and his supporters are already hateful people, and that's a possibility. But why would you add to that? Why would you throw it right back at the other side?

In all seriousness, my own personal prediction is that Hillary Clinton will end up winning the presidential election this year. However, Donald Trump got this far-farther than anyone thought he would. And though I don't completely understand it, I want to. Because he has a lot of supporters. Clearly there are people who see something in him, and I refuse to write that off as all of those people are stupid or racist or something. I want to know the truth, what the real issues are that we're facing that are making people lean towards this man and how we can resolve those issues in a different way.

Here's the thing, and if you're anti-Trump you might freak out a little when I say this, but although Clinton is ahead in the polls, there is still a possibility that Trump will be our next President. And I see so many people saying what they will do if that happens-they will move to Canada, they will become poor, they will die, they will end up in a concentration camp. I'm serious, people's wild imaginations never end. But if we're going to be realistic, and take a step back and stop letting fear and imagination get the best of us, we realize that that will not happen, and that if Trump does become president, the best thing to do is not run from our problems and move to Canada, but to face our problems head on. To try and understand why people want Trump as President. To change what you can on a state level. To stay involved in national and local politics and remain informed. Ignorance, after all, breeds fear, and we all know what fear creates.

So let's stop with the drama and the threats and the violence. Let's take a step back. Let's go into the future with grace and understanding and determination to make this country a better place, Trump or no Trump.