Context:

The informant’s family is from Nicaragua and has many culturally important sayings that are passed down from her grandmother and mother. In times of uncertainty or distress, they both tend to say the below in response to general circumstances.

Text:

A: “So the second saying – still from Nicaragua is : ‘Del agua manza libreme Dios que de la brava me cued yo’ and that basically means you’re asking God to save you from calm innocent looking people similar to the other one, because you stay away from turbulent waters. “

Analysis:

This saying is a form of verbal folklore that communicates cultural knowledge surrounding trust and deception. The contrast in the metaphor and symbolic imagery shows how calm appearances usually mask hidden dangers. The proverb circulated through the informant’s family, reflecting how proverbs can help to interpret difficult social situations in moments of uncertainty. The continued use of this phrase within the informant’s family reflects how diasporic communities hold onto culturally significant phrases as a way to make sense of unexplainable cultural phenomena and human behavior.