SLC-S25/W6 | Community World Tour: Idiomatic Expressions & Proverbs

There are some proverbs that don’t just speak, they stay. They sit in your memory quietly, only to come alive at moments when life begins to make sense in new ways.

For me, one of those timeless expressions came from my father’s lips, over and over again, while growing up:

“Operegogoro elagun danu.”
Climbing tall palm trees isn’t in vain.

It’s a Yoruba idiom from Ekiti State, where my father was raised, and like many of our people’s proverbs, it didn’t need much grammar, but it held a lifetime of wisdom.

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🌴 A Palm Tree, A Climb, A Conversation

There’s a story my father told us often, one of those tales I didn’t fully understand as a child, but now, as an adult trying to “climb” life’s challenges, it hits different.

He had an uncle, a palm wine tapper, who never went for the short trees. In a season where many men were tapping low-hanging trees to make their job easier, this man would always look out for the tallest, leanest, most intimidating trees. He climbed them with a calm boldness, day after day.

People in the village would laugh behind his back. “Why stress yourself climbing so high?” “Is it pride or foolishness?” They had their opinions, but none of them ever asked.

Until my father, as a curious boy, decided to speak up.

“Uncle, why do you always climb the tallest trees?”

And the old man smiled slowly and replied in Yoruba,

“Operegogoro elagun danu.”
I’m not climbing these tall trees for nothing.

Then he explained:
“When I climb high, I can see the entire farm. I see the short trees and which ones are ripe or dry. From above, I can map my next move. I don’t waste energy tapping empty trees. I only go where the fruit is ready.”

My father said that moment changed the way he saw people and the way he lived. That story? It planted itself in his heart. And now, it’s rooted in mine.

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🎓 A Heritage of Humility and Foresight

This proverb is not just about palm wine tapping. It’s about vision, preparation, and perspective. In our fast-paced world, we sometimes want the quickest results, the shortest routes, the easiest wins.

But not all that is quick is wise.

This Ekiti proverb reminds us that the higher we climb, in effort, in thought, in wisdom, the more we can see. It’s a reminder to ask questions before we judge, to pause before we dismiss someone’s process, and to embrace discomfort when it leads to clarity.

My father would often say,

“People have reasons for what they do. Just because you don’t understand them doesn’t mean they’re wrong.”

This is part of our cultural wisdom, elders embedding life lessons into poetic phrases, passing them down through fireside conversations, quiet advice, and unexpected moments of reflection.

Steem Atlas Pin

Now, when I face something that looks “too hard,” I remember that uncle. His legs climbing rough tree bark. His eyes scanning the farm. His wisdom, wrapped in simplicity.

We don’t always know why people take the roads they take, but if we listen long enough, we might hear a proverb in their footsteps.

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🧠 TYPE LESS SMILE MORE

“When you climb for insight, you won’t waste energy on emptiness.”

I would like to invite @blessedlife @etoro @eliany to join the challenge