How to Forgive Even When You Can't Forget by Thomas Herold

Foreword
    When I first had the idea to
develop a subliminal audio CD for forgiveness I had no idea how big
the topic would turn out to be. I realized that, especially when it
comes to fulfilling your goals and dreams in life, most people will
never get there because they've focused their attention on
incidents from the past. It's human nature to live in the past — or
the future — and we all could benefit greatly from living in the
present, because that is where forgiveness actually takes
place.
    Digging further into the topic of
forgiveness, I soon understood that this is an area that many of
use have completely either downplayed or forgotten entirely.
Somehow, we really don’t know how to deal with it. Some people are
lucky and they learn to forgive early on in life, but for most
people, being unable to forgive leaves a wound that reopens every
time an incident happens in their lives that triggers something
similar to what caused the wound in the first place.
    Forgiveness has a bad aftertaste
for most people — somehow, they associate it with being weak. After
you finish reading this book you will have come to the
understanding that it’s quite the opposite — forgiveness is an act
of maturity, bravery and intelligence; most importantly, it is a
direct connection to your heart. In essence, it is love
itself.
    For many, the topic of forgiveness
has religious connotations. Some religions have actually been
concerned with the philosophy and practice of forgiveness since
their beginnings. Many people have been helped. However, as
religions have evolved, there is often a shift from the inner Truth
of the heart to the outer necessity of conforming to social
standards and protocols. Forgiveness in these cases has usually
turned into a set of rules, a methodology of doctrine that no
longer serves to speak directly to the heart. Indeed, many people
have left their religions as they have come to an understanding
that universal spirituality is replacing doctrine. This opens the
door to a world-wide agreement and alignment of what’s essential
spiritually for every human being.
    Forgiveness is one of the most
important tasks we can undertake in our lives. Without forgiveness
we are stuck in the past with little hope for the future. Even
worse, we are stuck with our own resentment and anger for an entire
lifetime.
    There are many people that are,
for whatever reasons, not willing to forgive, and they take their
blame to the grave. They never learned how to forgive, and so were
powerless to deal with their resentment, anger and blame towards
themselves and others. The key to forgiveness is this: one must be
willing to learn how to forgive in order to reap the benefits of
its operation in one's life. It's the first step, and it is vital
to the entire process.
    We can choose our actions and by
executing our choices, we change our own reality and that of
others. But our choices may not always be in alignment with the
choices of others. This simply leads to conflicts. It is part of
human nature to experience these conflicts, otherwise we would
never learn a thing and never grow up. Maturity in this way comes
from learning how to eliminate conflict within ourselves as we
experience conflict with others. The conflict is canceled out,
within and without, and the stage is set for true
forgiveness.
    You can learn to forgive and you
can learn why forgiveness is easier than you think. When you come
to understand how an incident in your life causes you to be
resentful and angry, you can switch your behavior almost like a
light switch. Instead of continuing to blame, you can start the
forgiveness process.
    If you want to experience true
happiness in your life, look no further on the outside. Happiness
is achieved internally, not externally. You can achieve true
happiness by eliminating any stories you keep alive from the past
that may haunt you. You can confront these ghosts directly and when
you face them, they evaporate into nothing — they