You first!

Is there truly such a thing as a meaningless gesture?

They all mean something, don’t they, even it is the opposite of what the gesturer intends to convey?

The word gesture itself names a “meaningful movement.” Even a twitch or a slip of the tongue communicates something.

There is truth in the statement some gestures are so stingy, all they express is resentment. Take, for example, those signals we use to get across the idea we are willing to allow another to go first at an intersection. I mean the one where, with an air of boredom - often punctuated by a yawn - the driver raises one exhausted forefinger from the steering wheel and waves it wearily in the direction to which you have signalled you plan to turn. Now, you may be glad to shave a few extra seconds off your trip, but this is not the kind of satisfaction that stays with you much longer than it takes to cross the intersection. After all, you’ll soon be coming upon some other hold-up which will distract you from this shallow happiness. This short-lived gratification is only a slight improvement upon the peremptory jerk of the head which some drivers deem adequate to express recognition you may proceed: irritation expressed by this gesture is enough to make you wish you had been the first one to cede the right of way... even when it was yours to begin with!

In this same category falls the sharp little bleat of the horn, which signals the traffic light has turned green while you were finding a better station on the car radio. Oh, the beep means it’s your turn to go, but its barking quality nips at awareness to remind you you’re holding up the works. It sounds dictatorial and, although, in a way, it’s saying, “You first!”; the inflection means, “Green means go-o!” Really, its tone is snide and full of self-importance.

Then there are those gestures that stay with you in an uplifting way. You feel you’ve just had contact with a fellow human being, and the contact was favourable to both of you. Don’t you like it when you’re waiting at the cross walk and, as the driver slows, you see the head nod and a smile stretch across the face? Or, how about when you see the car start to slow down a quarter of a block away? You know the human race is making room for you! Both of these can zing a little spring into your step and make you glad you ventured out into the world.

Even better, you could meet up with that school bus driver. Have you had the pleasure? Up you come to the intersection or the cross walk. Here comes Driver Ray. He leans back in his seat, grins at you and, with a grand gesture as broad as a courtier’s, flourishes and bows to sweep you on through. Now, that’s a gesture that can make your day!