Background: My informant, O, is a 19 year old male consulting over text with his 60 year old Persian aunt. He recalled hearing this proverb from his great grandparents and grandparents growing up.

مرغ همسایه غازه in Farsi 

O: It basically means that from your perspective other people’s things look more enticing then they actually are. Sort of like “the grass is greener on the other side”. Because geese are more valuable than chickens apparently. In Persian culture, money and status are really important, but uh… virtues are as well, if that makes sense. So a lot of our proverbs are reminders to ourselves to keep our principles. To avoid envy in this case. 

My thoughts: This proverb is interesting because it is so similar to the english proverb “The grass is always greener on the other side” but in farsi it is the way it is because it has a certain sound to it that makes it easier to remember, much like how many english proverbs have alliteration or rhyme.

Background: My informant, O, is a 19 year old male consulting over text with his 60 year old Persian aunt. He recalled hearing this proverb from his great grandparents and grandparents growing up.

ماهی را هروقت از آب بگیری تازه است in Farsi

O: My dad always says this one to me, and my great aunt too. This idea is very ingrained in the culture.  It means that it’s never too late to do something, it’s never too late to start school or accomplish a goal you’ve set for yourself. My family would say it as a sort of comfort, like they’d tell me stories of people who didn’t find success or their calling in life until they were older. 

My thoughts: I personally really enjoy this proverb because it speaks to a exceedingly common insecurity about how to live one’s life. Across cultures, it doesn’t hurt to be reminded that you don’t need to be doing everything at the same pace as your peers, and if you need to take some time off in your life to figure things out before you go out and find what you are meant to do, you can. But you should always know that one day you can do what you dream. The fish are always there for you to catch, and it doesn’t matter at what point in your life you accomplish something, it’s more important that you just accomplish it.

Background: My informant, O, is a 19 year old male consulting over text with his 60 year old Persian aunt. He recalled hearing this proverb from his great grandparents and grandparents growing up.

In Farsi  بلسان حلو ولطف ، يمكنك جر فيل بشعر.

O: So this one has a lot to do with charisma, which is a very Persian thing because everything is very personable and negotiable, like, Persians do not really do things by the book. You can talk your way out of a lot of things in the culture, and that’s accepted, but this is sort of saying how you’re supposed to do that. You’re supposed to do it gently and kindly in order to get what you want.

My thoughts: My informant really emphasized this aspect negotiability of Persian culture with me, which I found really interesting. He told me that his aunt got upset at the pharmacy once because she couldn’t negotiate a copay. I think that contrasts a lot of our western expectation of equity, where of course, everyone is supposed to follow the same rules and be entitled to the same goods and services, whereas in this culture it may be viewed as more transactional, and based on mutual respect that things are done. Favors for favors are common and commercial rules are not as strict. 

Background: My informant, O, is a 19 year old male consulting over text with his 60 year old Persian aunt. He recalled hearing this proverb from his great grandparents and grandparents growing up.

مگه پول علف خرسه in Farsi

O: This one I kind of had to think about. At first I thought it meant more that money is a social construct, because I forgot that the proverb is asked in a questioning way, like, “IS money just leaves to a bear?” It really means that money is more important to us than leaves are to a bear. Money is worth more than leaves… *laughter* So it’s just a reminder that we can’t just expect money to be everywhere like leaves are everywhere in a forest, we can’t treat it like toilet paper. Do bears use leaves as toilet paper? Do they eat leaves?

Me: I don’t think they do. Maybe they eat leaves…

O: The sentiment is the same I think. We need money like bears need leaves, but we need to respect our money more than bears need to respect leaves. Leaves always grow back.

My thoughts: This proverb is essentially the Farsi version of “money doesn’t grow on trees”, in the sense that it’s meant to remind the audience that money shouldn’t be wasted on frivolous things because it’s something that one has to earn.