Step 4 : Forgiving your past You shouldn ' t jump too quickly into forgiveness . It ' s all too easy to pretend to yourself that you forgive old hurts and abusive treatment , when , in fact , what you are eager for is to escape the pain . The absence of pain , achieved through healing , gives you the right foundation for deep , lasting forgiveness . Self-acceptance is required first , and the realization that you — and everyone around you — have been doing the best you can from your own level of awareness . This can be quite a challenge when someone has hurt you deeply , but you can ' t fully separate from wrongdoing until you accept that others are trapped inside a reality they can ' t escape .
Step 5 : Accepting where you are right now This , too , is a stage you shouldn ' t jump into too quickly . The present moment isn ' t free of the burdens , memories and wounds of the past . They must be attended to before you can look around , breathe easily and love the moment you are in right now . A good beginning is to catch yourself when you have a bad memory and say , " I am not that person anymore ." For the truth is that you aren ' t .
Step 6 : Forming relationships where you feel loved and appreciated The path to unconditional love isn ' t meant to be lonely . You should walk it with people who reflect the love you see in yourself . You are likely to look around at some point and realize that not everyone among your family and friends is in sync with your aspirations . Without rejecting them , you have the right to find people who understand the path you ' re walking and sympathize with it . They are more likely to appreciate you for who you are now , and who you want to become .
Step 7 : Practicing the kind of love you aspire to receive Long ago , around the time I wrote a book called The Path to Love , I encountered many people , most of them women , who were constantly waiting for " the one " to show up and sweep them off their feet . But the only way to realistically find " the one " is to be " the one " yourself . Like attracts like , and the more you live your own ideal of love , the more your light will draw another light to you . This single point , I am told , has helped the most people find their love .
If you spend time every day with one or two of these steps , you will find a practical road that takes you to more love than you have in your life today . The steps unfold naturally once you begin to devote attention to them . You were born to be perfectly loved and you are completely lovable . The loss of that status is what ' s unnatural , not wanting to return to it , and the return means reconnecting with your true self . The path has been walked successfully for centuries , so I hope you take heart and join the fortunate ones who aspire this high . There is no better time to begin than now .
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