A path is not a decision. A path is a consequence. Walk the same place enough
times and a path appears, because the grass dies and the ground wears and the
easiest route becomes obvious to everyone who comes after.
The shortcuts in the park
Every public space has them. The corner where a sidewalk would make sense but is
not there, and the diagonal trail worn through the grass instead. The park
planner drew a square and the walkers drew a diamond.
What the worn ground means
The planners got it wrong. The planners drew where people should walk. The
walkers showed where people want to go.
The paving that comes after
Sometimes the city notices. They follow the trail, they pave it, and the path
becomes official. Sometimes they do not notice, or they notice and choose not
to pave, and the trail keeps wearing deeper.
The path that refuses to wear
A paved path that nobody walks is a path someone decided for a reason that made
sense at the time. The path that wears itself into the earth is a path that
everyone agrees on, without a meeting.
What I learned from this
Listen to the worn places. Do not build where you think people should go. Build
where they are already going, and pave it so they stop wearing the grass.
This is as true of websites as it is of parks.