23 Dec 1999   

‘The strength of the elderly is in the ears and on the lips’.
(Mossi proverb, Togo, Burkina Fasso and Mali)

22 Dec 1999

‘A long voyage begins with just one step’.
(Philippine proverb)

21 Dec 1999

‘It is easier to cover our feet with sandals than to cover the earth with carpets’.
(Indian proverb)

20 Dec 1999

‘The toad that wanted to avoid the rain fell in the water’.
(Bayansi proverb. Bayansi is possibly related to Yans, in the Democratic republic of Congo)

17 Dec 1999

‘A woman’s stomach does not grow if she is not pregnant’.
(Kamba, Kenya proverb.)

16 Dec 1999

‘Do not insult a crocodile while your feet are still in the water’.
(Nilotic proverb.)

15 Dec 1999

‘Even if thin, the elephant remains the king of the forest’.
Duala (Cameroon) proverb.

14 Dec 1999

‘If the needle doesn’t pass, the thread doesn’t follow’.
Ambede (Gabon and Congo) proverb.

13 Dec 1999

‘If a bird does not recognise a tree, it will not rest on it’.
Duala (Cameroon) proverb.

10 Dec 1999

‘A small axe is not sufficient to cut down a large tree’.
Mongo (Democratic Republic of Congo – former Za‹re) proverb.

09 Dec 1999

‘Do not throw away the oars before the boat reaches the shore’.
Mpongue (African) proverb [Mpongue is not listed on Ethnologue]

07 Dec 1999

‘The womb is not a boat, it cannot carry as much’.
Douala (Cameroon) proverb

06 Dec 1999

‘Even without drumbeats, banana leaves dance’.
Ekonda (Democratic Republic of Congo – former Za‹re) proverb.

03 Dec 1999

‘If a frog leaves the swamp for the mountains, it means it is in danger’.
(Bantandu proverb, language unlisted in the Ethnologue database)

02 Dec 1999

‘The sun shines during the day, not at night’.
(Mongo proverb – Democratic Republic of Congo)

01 Dec 1999

‘A turtle never abandons its carriage’.
(Basuto proverb – South Africa, listed under Suto in Ethnologue)

30 Nov 1999             

‘The hand assists the foot, but the foot cannot do the same’.
(Mongo proverb, Democratic Republic of Congo – former Za‹re)

29 Nov 1999    

‘An egg today is better than a chicken tomorrow’.
(Vietnamese proverb)

26 Nov 1999    

‘Clothes should not be made for an unborn child’.
(Bangala proverb, Democratic Republic of Congo – former Za‹re)

25 Nov 1999    

‘After the storm the sun comes out’.
(Vietnamese proverb)

24 Nov 1999    

‘You cannot think you could teach a fish to swim’.
(Asian proverb)

23 Nov 1999    

‘The corpse of a bird does not decompose in flight, but on the ground’.
(Duala proverb, Cameroon)

22 Nov 1999    

‘You are invited to join the hunt when your nets are in evidence’.
(Ntomba proverb, Democratic Republic of Congo – former Za‹re)

19 Nov 1999    

‘A genius is he who is first to be right’.
(Douala proverb, Cameroon)

18 Nov 1999    

‘An elephant grows and becomes an adult, even if people do not like it.’
(Vai proverb, Liberia and Sierra Leone)

17 Nov 1999    

‘The mouth does not forget what it tasted only one time’.
(Bahaya proverb, Tanzania)

16 Nov 1999    

‘When a tree is cut down, a child can climb it’.
(Vietnamese proverb).

15 Nov 1999    

‘When there is will, there is a solution’.
(Vietnamese proverb).

12 Nov 1999    

‘The path leads towards loved ones not thorns’.
(Duala proverb, Cameroon)

11 Nov 1999    

‘Without effort no harvest will be abundant’.
(Burundian proverb, Burundi)

10 Nov 1999    

‘A knife does not recognise its owner’.
(Mongo proverb, Democratic Republic of Congo – former Za‹re)

09 Nov 1999    

‘The new moon cannot come until the other has gone’.
(Bahunde or Hunde proverb, Democratic Republic of Congo – former Za‹re)

08 Nov 1999    

‘If you want to clear the land secretly, the noise of the axe will give you away’.
(Ekonda proverb, Democratic Republic of Congo – former Za‹re)

05 Nov 1999    

‘Though it is the hand that gives, the man must be thanked’.
(Basonge proverb)

04 Nov 1999    

‘A hammer does not work with iron’.
(Mongo proverb. Mongo is a district in Chad. Mongo is also a language spoken in the Democratic Republic of the Congo [former Zaire] )

03 Nov 1999    

‘A leader does not rise for a squirrel’.
(Ngombe proverb)

02 Nov 1999    

‘A forest cannot be cut with a broken axe’.
(Bantandu proverb)

29 Oct 1999             

‘The buffalo does not wander from the marsh where it was born’.
(Ngbaka proverb, Ngbaka is spoken in the Democratic Republic of the Congo [former Zaire], Republic of the Congo and the Central African Republic)

28 Oct 1999    

‘Roots do not know what a leaf has in mind’.
(Mongo proverb, Mongo is a district in Chad. Mongo is also a language spoken in the Democratic Republic of the Congo [former Zaire], )

27 Oct 1999    

‘A friend when in need is a faithful friend’.
(Vietnamese proverb)

26 Oct 1999    

‘Until the old moon disappears completely, the new moon cannot come.’
(Bahunde proverb, Hunde is a language spoken in the Democratic Republic of the Congo [former Zaire] )
This is my rough translation of the French version which reads ‘La lune nouvelle ne peut venir tant qu’il y a l’autre’
(Chinese proverb)

25 Oct 1999    

‘A camel does not tease another camel about his humps’.
(Egyptian proverb)

22 Oct 1999    

“Teeth are all friends among each other”.
(Galla proverb)

21 Oct 1999    

‘Pretend you are dead and you will see who really loves you’.
(Bamoun proverb)

20 Oct 1999    

‘A goat never grazes in the same place’.
(Duala proverb)

19 Oct 1999    

‘A herdsman must yell to enter the fence’.
(Nilotic proverb)

18 Oct 1999    

‘Eggs should never be beaten with stones’.
(Sao Tom‚ proverb)

15 Oct 1999    

‘Beautiful day, a gift for the traveller’.
(Indonesian proverb)

14 Oct 1999    

‘Wisdom can be found travelling’.
(Sri Lankan proverb)

13 Oct 1999    

‘Confiding a secret to an unworthy person is like carrying grain in a bag with a hole.’
(Nilotic proverb, African)

12 Oct 1999    

‘If you are patient in a moment of anger, you will spare yourself one hundred days of tears’.
(Cambodian proverb)

11 Oct 1999    

‘There is no evil without goodness.’
(Costarican proverb, Central America)

08 Oct 1999    

‘The larger the ship, the larger the storm.’
(Argentine proverb)

07 Oct 1999    

‘A book is like a garden in the pocket’
(Indian proverb)
This is my rough translation of the French version which reads: ‘Un livre est comme un jardin de poche’ (proverbe indien)

06 Oct 1999    

‘Envy for a friend is like the taste of a sour pumpkin’.
(Peruvian proverb)

05 Oct 1999    

‘Where there are trees there are no builders’.
(Mexican proverb)

04 Oct 1999    

‘A stolen object brings no joy to one’s heart’.
(Uruguayan proverb)

01 Sep 1999    

‘When a mother has twins she must sleep on her back.’
(Peul proverb. The Peul or Fulfulde speaking people live in Senegal, Mali, Burkina Faso, Cameroun, Chad, Nigeria, Mauritania, Benin, Togo, and Niger.)

30 Sep 1999

“The heart of an adult is like that of an elephant”.
(Bantandu proverb, Bantandu is an African language that is unlisted on Ethnologue)

29 Sep 1999    

“Even if a baby seems unpleasant to look at, his mother never refuses him”.
(Bamoun proverb, Bamoun is spoken in Cameroun)

28 Sep 1999    

“Time and tide wait for no man”.
(Chinese proverb)

27 Sep 1999    

“If the well is distant, its water does not quench the thirst of the pilgrim”.
(Chinese proverb)

24 Sep 1999    

“You cannot be a mouse and a bat at the same time”.
(Bet proverb; Beti is an African language unlisted in Ethnologue.)

23 Sep 1999    

“Who does not love to dance, does not love to sing”.
(Lango proverb,Lango is the name for two distinct languages spoken in Sudan and Uganda)

22 Sep 1999    

“Strong souls have willpower, weak ones only desires”.
(Chinese proverb)

21 Sep 1999    

“Necessity is mother of every invention”.
(Mexican proverb)

20 Sep 1999    

“Death is like a dress that, at some point or another, everyone has to wear”.
(Mandingo proverb. The Mandingo people live in Gambia, Guinea Bissau, Liberia, Senegal and Sierra Leone)

17 Sep 1999    

“There is no better mirror than a best friend”.
(Cape Verde proverb)

16 Sep 1999    

“Not even the five fingers of our hands are alike”.
(Afghan proverb)

15 Sep 1999    

“Donated vinegar is sweeter than honey”.
(Afghan proverb)

14 Sep 1999    

“When weeds invade the land, it means the owner is absent”.
(Bahumbu proverb. Humbu is a dialect of Lunda, spoken in Zambia, East Africa.)

13 Sep 1999    

“Those who seek revenge must remember to dig two graves”.
(Chinese proverb)

10 Sep 1999    

“A rooster does not sing on two roofs”.
(Ntomba proverb, Democratic Republic of Congo)

09 Sep 1999    

“A baby cannot be heard crying in his mother’s womb”.
(Bamfinu proverb, [Mfinu] Democratic Republic of Congo )

07 Sep 1999    

“Only when a tree has grown can you tie your cow to it”.
(Jabo proverb,Liberia)

06 Sep 1999    

“The skin of the leopard is beautiful, but not his heart”.
(Baluba proverb, [Luba-Kasai] Democratic Republic of Congo)

03 Sep 1999    

“Who is always sad, does not even have fun when drunk”.
(Colombian proverb)

02 Sep 1999    

“A wise man is able to adapt to the surprises of life as water to the decanter it is poured in”.
(Chinese proverb)

01 Sep 1999    

“A person who never travels, believes his mother’s cooking is the best in the world”.
(Kiganda [African] proverb)

31 Aug 1999    

‘Death is like a robe everyone has to wear’.
(Mandingo proverb, Guinea)

30 Aug 1999

“Between imitation and envy, imitation is better”.
(Ekonda proverb, Democratic Republic of Congo (former Zaire))