Last night's Saturday Night Live was hard to watch, but after the emotional and political unrest following the presidential election this past week, it might have been exactly what we needed. 
After a tear-jerking cold open by Kate McKinnon, host Dave Chappelle perfectly balanced gravitas and humor in his opening monologue, giving us the laugh we needed while acknowledging the feeling of despair many Americans are feeling since Donald Trump was elected president.

The show kicked off with a cold open by Kate McKinnon, who has portrayed Hillary Clinton in sketches throughout the campaign season. McKinnon, as Hillary, sat at a piano and tearfully sang Leonard Cohen's 'Hallelujah.' She ended the song with the sincere, optimistic message we all needed to hear, even if just from a woman dressed as Clinton: "I'm not giving up, and neither should you."
Tears were flowing freely at this point.

Shortly after, Chappelle, who hosted the show for the first time last night, went into his opening monologue and attempted to lighten the mood with some on-point jokes about white protesters, Black Lives Matter, Trump's internet trolling and more. He wrapped up with a moment of thanks for President Barack Obama (more tears), recalling a party he recently attended at the White House, hosted by BET.

The event, which will air on exclusively on BET on Tuesday, November 15 at 9 PM EST as a special called Love & Happiness, An Obama Celebration, and featured performances by Common, Usher, the Roots and more, was described by Chappelle as a "really, really beautiful night."  

He reminded us how rare it was in past centuries for Black people to even be allowed to visit the White House, and said that he took such pride in seeing "how happy everybody was, these people that had been historically disenfranchised."

"It made me feel hopeful, and it made me feel proud to be an American, and it made me very happy about the prospects of our country," Chappelle concluded. "So, in that spirit, I'm wishing Donald Trump luck, and I'm going to give him a chance," he said. "And we, the historically disenfranchised, demand that he give us one, too."
Just when we thought we'd run out of Kleenex from crying, Chappelle hit us with what ended up being the most talked-about skit from the night — his version of The Walking Dead. 

Coupled with musical guest A Tribe Called Quest, Chappelle put on an excellent show. Hopefully it won't be his last stint on SNL.

Make sure to tune in to Love & Happiness, An Obama Celebration on Tuesday, November 15 at 9 PM on BET.