I've messed up. I lost plenty of time trying to figure out why my esphome automation does not work.  Then I remembered what I've been taught: Plan first, implement later.  Therefore: (back) to the drawing board. I quickly drafted the state machine diagram. 

Now it was easy to see wich states I need and where to place the logic. The implementation worked at the first test. Now I hope, that I am able to finish the project before the deadline.

After I changed to a genuine sensor, the gestures works, too. At least in a quick test with my hand. Let's see how rabbit fur works :-)

Next task: connect the motor & driver.