The sidewalk direction dance lasted long enough to need rehearsal

I was walking toward a man on a narrow sidewalk. There was room for us to pass, provided both people selected different sides.

We selected the same side.

I moved right. He moved left, which was also my right from my position. We stopped.

I shifted left. He shifted right.

At this point, the normal solution was for one person to stay still. Both of us knew this. Neither of us did it.

We moved again at exactly the same time and blocked each other for a third round. The interaction had become less like walking and more like a very short dance performed by people who had not agreed on music.

He smiled. I smiled. Smiling made the mistake look friendly but provided no directional information.

I pointed to my left and said, “I’ll go this way.”

Then, for reasons I cannot explain, I stepped right.

He had trusted the spoken plan and stepped toward the opening on his side. We nearly collided. I was now not only obstructing him but providing false traffic instructions.

I stopped completely and raised both hands. He walked around me, laughing. I said, “We got there,” as if we had jointly completed a difficult navigation project.

Behind him, a woman pushing a stroller had watched the entire sequence. She chose her side early. I moved out of the way with unusual commitment.

The sidewalk dance happens because both people are trying to be considerate in real time. Each adjustment is based on the other person’s last movement, which is already being reversed. It is politeness with lag.

There must be a universal recovery move. Standing still works, but only if one person does it first and does not panic when the other also pauses. Pointing works, provided the pointer’s feet accept the same plan.

What ends the shuffle fastest: stop moving, make a clear hand gesture or choose one side and commit? And after the third switch, are both people allowed to laugh, or does that risk adding a fourth direction?