Being an opinionated person is a blessing and a curse and the current presidential election has been testing both of these extremes.

I am very proud of my liberal views; and as such, I am not afraid to speak my mind on issues I find particularly alarming.  Many of them have been brought into the limelight throughout this election.

For example, climate change has been a main issue discussed by Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump.  Clinton recognizes climate change and wants to increase measures to ensure that climate change does not cause further problems for our environment.

Trump on the other hand wants to move to dissolve the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) because climate change is a “hoax”.  There are multiple flaws to this logic but I will only point out the main one.

The EPA  provides a lot of services that are vitally important to the environment and our health.  For example, the EPA ensures that companies have clean emissions so the air we breathe is safe.

Without the EPA, our drinking water would not be safe to drink because there would be no regulations on our water.

It is with these views in mind that I want to be sure that my voice is heard.

This is my first presidential election.  The fact that I have to choose between these two people are not favorable in any sense of the word, but I am happy that I am able to exercise my right to vote as a woman.

This election would be huge if Clinton were to win.  She would be the first female president in United States history.

Now, I do not believe that she would be the perfect female president.  I am not sure that there is such a thing as a perfect president.

However, the fact that she has made it this far speaks volumes to the development of the U.S. as a country.

We are behind other countries in terms of women in politics.  The first woman president of any country was Isabel de Perron of Argentina who served between 1974 and 1976.

We just had the first African American president for two terms.  Let us now welcome a new milestone to our history by electing a woman.

With Election Day coming to a close the feeling I have is very bittersweet.  I can no longer annoy my friends with politically charged posts.  However, I can now follow my friends’ posts again without feeling the uncontrollable urge to block them.

Speaking of friends, I have a very polarized friend group.  I have my generally liberal friends from Erie, but I also have a very conservative group of friends from the Pittsburgh area.

Throughout the past couple of months, these groups have clashed on my page in the form of hundreds of comments.

My hope with the election coming to an end is that the hatred between my friends will come to a halt.

Not only will the result of the election bring down tensions online, but also it will hopefully have the same effect in my house.

I commute, so I live with my parents who, to my chagrin, seemed to be leaning more toward voting for Trump.  This would not be a problem if I did not have such a loud mouth.

With Thanksgiving coming soon, I am terrified that dinner conversation will switch to politics.

No matter the outcome, I fear that I will be out numbered at the table and that arguments will ensue.  It has gotten to the point that I have asked a couple of my good friends if I can join them for their Thanksgiving if I have a falling out at mine.

On my way to school this Election Day, there was coverage on the radio that as early as 6:30 a.m. there were lines forming outside polling stations.  It was also reported that the stations were expecting long lines for voting all day.

I am glad that people were getting out to vote for the candidate that they feel is best equipped to handle the job.  It is our civic duty as citizens to vote and to not do so seems counterintuitive to the whole democratic process.

I am relieved that the election is over and I cannot wait until we as a population can move past this and all become friends again.