I won't lie to you, Wednesday morning when I awoke to find that Donald J. Trump would become our next president, I cried. Sadness overwhelmed my body and fear for this country filled my mind. I was worried about the future of America.

After crying for a little bit, watching Hilary Clinton's concession speech, and scrolling through my Facebook feed for an hour, I decided it was time to stop mourning and get to work!

I, like many, was against Trump because of his hateful speech, his misogynist outlook, and his stringent immigration policy. I don't necessarily agree with all of Clinton's policies either, but I felt they were more aligned with my beliefs than Trump's. I believe in an America that respects its neighbors, serves it neighbors and invites all to partake in the "American Dream." Trump speaks of an "American Dream," but I am not sure it is the same dream as mine.

He is now the President-elect and on Jan. 20, he will become the next president of the United States of America, so like I said, we have work to do.

This country has been divided by this election and it is now time to come together and strengthen our country. I believe that America is strengthened as we serve our neighbors. It is strengthened as we learn about one another and are compassionate to each other. It is strengthened as use our freedom of speech. The best part about freedom of speech is that we all have a voice. We can use that voice to stand up for what we believe is true, right and good. It is important to remember, that as we exercise our freedom of speech we need to be considerate of others. Expressing our opinions does not mean we need to be hateful or mean to others. It is ok to disagree, but it is not ok to hate.

I disagree with Trump on many things, but I do not hate him. I am sure there will be things that he does during his presidency that I will agree with, and I plan to give him credit for those things. There will also be things that he does that I will disagree with, and I plan on raising my voice to express that. That is the joy of this nation.

Wether you agree with Trump or not, he will soon be our president. This is still a democracy, and your voice still matters. Whether you voted for Trump or not, there is still work to be done. There are people in this nation that are scared, but we can help them to not be. We can be a friend and an advocate for them, we can reach out to local leaders and state representatives and ask them to fight for us. We can reach out and defend them in their time of need.

We may only vote for a president every four years, but elections happen every year. There are more ways to get involved in the democracy of this country other than just voting. So, continue to exercise your right as an American citizen and let your voice be heard. There is still a lot of work you can do because your voice truly does matter.