are we guilty of being nice for a reason?

when you treat someone nice, have you ever wondered why you are doing so? and how is it that when you can be nice to a stranger but be utterly ruthless to someone you know? there is a saying that it is a sin to expect returns when you treat someone nice.

if so, have all the couples in the world sinned? if one does not treat the other person especially nice, will they ever be able to win the heart of the other? whenever has someone not have to be extra nice to the other to win the heart of the one he/she likes? but relationships are reciprocal, it can't work if the other is not willing to even try.

has the governments of the world over sinned? if they do not look after their citizens, can they stay on in power? some dictators treat their citizens well, some do not. however, good or bad, even dictators have to be nice to their lackeys so that they do not turn against him, to keep their loyalty. but even dictators do have their downfall, world events in the past decade is evidence that no one government or dictator is able to stay in power for long.

so then we have to ask ourselves, if things are so grim when we treat others nice, why do we carry on with it? it just that we all have a reason for being nice to someone or something. no matter how we try to make the reason seem so great, so selfless, there is always an underlying reason. it sure feels nice when you treat someone nice and that person reciprocates in however small a way. this reason, which always starts from within, of putting one self at ease or making oneself happy, does not make any act really selfless, right?