Thank God, the election is over. Maybe you’re beside yourself with joy and hope and “Yes We Did.” Good for you. It’s the other side I’m thinking about at this moment. The folks who feel sick to their stomachs. The ones who are telling each other that the country’s fucked. They’re pissed and they want everyone to know it. Well, I’m listening.

It’s tough to lose. I know because I’ve lost plenty of times over my four decades of voting. Whenever that happened, I, too, spewed forth with harsh words about the intelligence of American voters. I, too, have felt the heat of fury because my country would be led by someone who would take us in the wrong direction. How could they not see the danger that was before us? How could they support someone so very wrong for the times and the issues we faced?

Like you, I care deeply about America and what our nation stands for in the eyes of the world. Like you I want my tax dollars to be spent on true needs and not “the bridge to nowhere.” I detest the idea of handouts to undeserving people and bone-headed projects and $500 toilet seats.

You may detest our president-elect and everything he stands for. I get it. I’ve felt that way more than once. But I always come back to a simple reality. I love our country and the faith that our system of government puts in ordinary people: you, me, the guy across the street who keeps putting religious tracts in our door, the lady who walks her dog every evening at 7 sharp, and the college kids who get drunk at keggers on the weekend.

I don’t always love what happens when “we the people” go to the polls. But I believe in the people a whole lot more than I could ever believe any other system of government on this planet. Having lived through the assassination of the Kennedy brothers, Dr. King, and few others, I will say in no uncertain terms that the kind of hate that leads to such violence is despicable and traitorous. No one has the right to rob me or my fellow Americans of our right to choose the person who will lead our nation.

I believe that even in the face of defeat at the polls, we ordinary folks can push back in powerful ways. We can continue the tradition of honorable dissent through political action. It helps to listen to the other side and hear their take. That’s how we find common ground to build on. And if common ground doesn’t exist, I come away with a better sense of why I believe what I believe and a greater love for what I believe is right.

Yes, I voted for Senator Obama. I voted for him because I believe that he is the best choice—the best man for the job. Time will tell if I and millions of my fellow Americans made the right decision.

All we ask is that you give him a chance, just as we gave your guy a chance after 9-11 and the days before the invasion of Iraq. That’s how it works. All of us together, holding our collective breath, waiting to see if our faith and hope and trust is well-placed. And if it is not, then we work for change the next time around. This is what democracy looks like. It’s not easy, it’s not always pretty, but I thank God that I’m an American.

Rev. Christine Brownlie has been the full-time minister at the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of the New River Valley in Blacksburg since 1999. The opinions that she offers are her own and do not necessarily represent those of her congregation.