By: Heather Aliano

Today, more than ever, we need to be ready to roll up our sleeves and get to work.

I know you’re probably worried about the future because everything seems so uncertain. I am too. But lately one thing has really kept me going — we are Americans. We all live in this country and call it home. We often disagree, and those disagreements can be very important, personal, and challenging to navigate. That’s normal. 

However, no matter how intense our disagreements may be, at the end of the day, we share this country and our future is bound up in each other. 

We all want to live and thrive in our home no matter where we come from, what we believe about politics, or religion, or who we voted for. Americans are such a diverse group of people, and that is what makes our country so special.

As a military spouse, I know what it means to love your country. My husband joined the Air Force after 9/11 and has been serving ever since. We’ve been through so much as a country, and as a military family, in the last two decades. I know that the United States is flawed – every country is flawed – but it’s home.

Our service has taught me that in hard times, we all have a choice. About how we act, how we live, how we use our words and our time and our resources. And that is why I’m doubling down on my commitment to this country that I love. 

I’m committed to doing what it takes to find solutions to our problems, and that means coming to terms with the painful parts of our past — even if it makes me uncomfortable. I am going to continue showing up for people. I am going to continue working to make my neighborhood, my community, and our country a better place.

I am committed to opening my home, heart, and mind to people who are not like me because I believe it’s our duty to love our neighbors as ourselves.

It’s important to love our neighbors.

We might disagree on a lot, but no matter what happens today, America belongs to all of us. We live in this country together, and we need to work together to rebuild it.

We are going to get through today, through this week, through this year, and we are going to build the kind of country we all can be proud to call home. 

Join me and the One America Movement in building hope and unity in our country.