‘Your perception of me is a reflection of you; my reaction to you is an awareness of me.’ – Unknown

What does this quotation mean?
The short answer is that we cannot control what people perceive about us,
but what we can control is how we react.

~

A stranger knows very little of you.
So instead, they recognize aspects of themselves within you.

Some see their fears, sometimes their hopes, or even their dreams.
Unresolved residual emotions get reflected outward too, as do recently primed emotions.
Unresolved emotions when triggered can create such strong responses that we react without thinking.

One reason that something triggers us is because of the parts of us that we do not want to see.
Your consciousness, especially your ego hides the parts that might threaten your sense of self.

It is a defense mechanism that creates our blind spot.
A blind spot is something that our consciousness does not want to see. For example, if someone was selfish but their defense mechanism filtered their awareness of that behavior then the brain tries to find a safer way to communicate it.
Someone with this blindspot may see the world as selfish; seeing all others as being selfish.
This is your mind trying to show you, teach you, and guide you to heal.

If you recognize the blindspot, learn, and adjust your behavior you are then free;
otherwise, if one is not ready for that decision in the confrontation it will reoccur in new scenarios or people.
The loop will continue until the blindspot is seen, confronted, and if the lesson is learned it leads to the decision which will free them.

~

With that, returning to the quotation:

Who you see when you look at someone,
especially a stranger is largely your reflection.
If someone calls everyone lazy, or if someone calls everyone sneaky,
Often it’s a confession about themselves.

The other part of the quotation is where your power resides.
Your power is in how you respond, and it also provides you awareness of yourself.


To Summarize with an Example:
If someone is mean to you, know that it is more about them than you.
Understanding this allows for better empathy. The other part of the quotation is where you choose, to repeat the glimpsed behavior, or to focus on healing.

Next time your feel triggered, recognize it as a moment of power where you glimpsed a reflection of something that you need to heal within yourself.  

Everyone has blindspots, heck even our eyes do.
Reflections can be hard to see on their own, however, when two work together, like our eyes.
Each can help the other see their blindspots, furthermore, the shared perspective literally adds a new dimension of depth to sight.

Further Resource:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IOznodya2mg