True love is simply unconditional love. Unconditional love is love without conditions, without rules, without expectations, without judgment, without ego.
We are humans and we complicate things. We have been through difficult times and difficult relationships. Sometimes we are hurt and, as long as we can learn from our mistakes and move on, everything will be alright in the long run. But we are human and we complicate things. We complicate love and its meanings. We also misuse the word.
A human may tell you that he will love you, if you change this one little thing. The one little thing becomes another little thing and another, until you find you are not the person you once were, all in the attempt to be loved. Why did that other human say he loved you, if really he wanted to change you? It is a complicated version of love that he has learned in his life. He feels that you should show love in a certain way, act a certain way, fit into certain roles that you cannot if you want to be true to yourself. Is that then true love? He will say it is.
Love with expectations cannot be true love.
The word love is also often misused. It can be used as an apology, an excuse, or as begging. How many times have you heard, "but, I love you!" Is this true love?
Unconditional love must first occur within yourself. You must be able to love yourself as you are, as you feel, as you believe, before you are able to share this unconditional love with another. You have to be strong in your love of self to be able to tell whether you are receiving true love from another. You have to learn to respect your own boundaries of what is good and right.
Look at your pets. They love you. Period. They love how you smell, they love what you do, what you eat, and how you do it. They want to be in the bedroom with you, in the bathroom with you, they want to walk down the hall with you. They still love you if you need to be alone for a little while. They love you when they are taking a nap, then they'll wake up for a little while and come and find you to make sure you are still alright. This is unconditional love. Pets do not judge you or expect anything from you. Pets do not have ego. They simply exist in the moment, ready to love and be loved.
True love exists within Spirit, within yourself, within your pets, and within other humans in your life. True unconditional love is beautiful and freeing.
