Frank, who had a traumatic childhood, discovered inside of himself "an essential love that was reliable, vast, and undamaged." He says, "Love has been my mentor. Love itself has taught me to love."
This kind of love, "exists before and beyond conditions. It is not something to be achieved by our personalities. It is not an idealistic love to be attained by following a certain path, not is it the result of reaching a special spiritual state. It is always present. In a way, it is the background for all experience, the very essence of our being."
"Because this love lives within us, it is always available. It is available to help us face the stuck, wounded, rejected aspects of ourselves and to meet the challenges that are yet to come. Dissolving our defenses, it enables us to grapple with the demons of negative self-image, shame, confusion, and unresolved loss, rather than continuing to avoid them. Then we can heal."