Whenever we are interacting with others, how they treat us greatly impacts the way we treat them and vice versa. Not always, but for this reason people often resemble mirrors. I don’t think we try to be that way. But how we are treated greatly influences our behavior, so much that we are tempted to mirror the other person. If an argument breaks out and one person starts yelling, it isn’t long before all the voices are raised. When a person is calm and soft spoken, that tends to set the tone in the opposite way.
It is a strange thing how our response is often amplified, whether in a good or bad way. It’s like saying to the other person, I will show you! If they treat us good, we treat them better. If they buy us a gift, we buy them something nicer in return. On the flip side, when they hurt us we want to hurt them back. Ignore me for a few minutes? I will ignore you for an entire day! You hit me; I will hit you back even harder! This is one reason they recommend not fighting fire with fire because it only spreads.
As good to others as we think we are, we still fall short in how we treat others. Many people try to follow the golden rule in Mat 7:12 where it talks about doing unto others as you would have them do unto you. I’ve also heard other variations of this rule found in other religions. I even heard an atheist talk about a rule he followed, which was to treat others as they would have you treat them. The point is people simply want to be treated well. Treating others well is profound wisdom to follow but it isn’t easy. The moment our emotions get involved; it seems like we lose our minds! The good news is emotions can be controlled.
Try paying attention, if only for a day. Observe every interaction with other people. Whenever your encounter with another person seems a little off, think about whether you are the mirror, or if they are yours. One of you is at the root of the negative interaction. One has to change. Who knows, if you take the first step in the right direction, they might follow behind with the second!