“Wonder, can you come over? I’m dizzy.” I immediately respond to my elderly neighbor’s phone call and enter his home, hearing Fox News playing loudly in the background. As his symptoms suggest, he is indeed hypotensive (low blood pressure) with a fast, irregular heartbeat. As we call for help, I perform a carotid massage on an artery in his neck, which slows his heart rate and makes him feel better.

My white neighbor, more like a loving uncle, expresses his gratitude. I smile because looking in from the outside, no one would have predicted a loving friendship between us. He’s a die-hard Republican, high school graduate who worked blue-collar jobs his whole life and whose information on national politics comes from Fox News. I am a medical graduate, African-American woman who tends to vote independent/Democratic. Our political discussions are defined by our vast differences in ideology, purpose and voting patterns.

But our relationship is much more than politics. There were many days when I came home from a long call schedule at the hospital to my yard, newly mowed, and a text message on my phone saying that dinner was ready and to come on over. My neighbor had a key to my house and knew the security code. He’d meet the plumber while I was at work. I’d go through his medications to explain what each one did. We developed a relationship that surpassed our ideological differences.

Our nation today is deeply divided along cultural and political lines. It is particularly concerning as we see national leaders push divisive ideology. If there were ever a time to employ the most poignant weapon of love, it is now. It is important for Americans to love each other because it is the fabric that strengthens us as a nation and connects us as a family. Love is not just an intense feeling — it’s the actions that support healthy human connections.

One such loving action is being patient. Patience involves walking the journey with someone for the purpose of guiding and not condemning. The human journey is not easy because of rocks along the path, potholes and the occasional deer that appears out of nowhere — sometimes people can veer off the road. These days, I hear both Republicans and Democrats condemning each other, but neither side listens well. They can agree on bad referee calls, the cost of food, the challenges of raising kids, yet vehemently condemn each other over party affiliation.

Democrats act as though all is lost because Donald Trump won the presidency, and Republicans act as though Trump is the answer to all of life’s problems. Neither is true; we can still influence the sphere where we exist. We can be deliberate about loving our neighbor and building relationships even with those with whom we disagree. Instead of discussing disagreements, why not discuss our commonality? We are on this planet together.

Patience is seeking to understand the perspective of another person, even if you disagree. To understand, one must listen so closely that you can repeat back what you heard, not to make the next point, but rather to give that human being the respect that they deserve, of simply being heard. Each person deserves this because they are human.

Once you have confirmed that you understand the point being made, then take the opportunity for your point to be heard and understood. When a point is understood, it may or may not result in a change of mind or a change of heart. What is assured is that when both parties show each other patient love, even if they disagree, that process in and of itself will strengthen human connections in a respectful way.

As we move forward into 2025, practice patience. Look for opportunities to help people, and smile. Sometimes, a person’s day is made simply because someone acknowledged them as a human being. And practice love. My neighbor and I still hold the same differing political views, yet we grow closer and closer over time.

Wonder Drake is a professor of medicine and senior associate dean of faculty affairs at the University of Maryland School of Medicine.