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> You're like sardines, very many but only enough for one wrapped piece of fish. Fish are properly wrapped individually in a leaf for cooking, but sardines are so small that a bunch of them may be wrapped together to make up only one small bundle. The idiom may be applied to a numerous but weak enemy or to a clan that is large but ineffective as in raising money for its members, or for a large group of workers who do not accomplish very much. |
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> Like Beachedarsai's food, only a little but it does not disappear. Beachedarsai and a friend, one day, went to heaven. On arrival they were very hungry, so they visited one of the gods who provided food for them. The "food" was one tiny piece of taro and a bit of fish. Beachedarsai thought to himself that this would hardly suffice, but he picked up the taro and ate it. As he did so another piece appeared on the plate. He ate the piece of fish and another piece of fish appeared. His friend also ate and on his plate as well a new piece of taro or fish appeared as each was consumed. When they were satisfied, there remained on their plates a piece of taro and fish. The idiom is applied to any small blessing, such as a small but steady income, or Western meals that, in contrast with the Palauan tray full of food, are served in small portions, and so on. |
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> Collecting feathers From the folktale about the origin of kite-flying in Palau: the inventor, Mesubed Dingal, while out fishing, lost his wife to kidnappers; he fashioned a kite in the shape of a frigate bird (kedam) using feathers collected from all the birds of Palau, then used this to go in search of his wife. The idiom applies to one who borrows freely. |
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> It's as if we were walking on the blade of a knife. i.e., we're treading on dangerous ground; if we make one wrong move, we're finished. |
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> Like the insects which stays at ashes of fire but doesn't burn. You're near a situation which needs immediate attention but you don't lend a hand. |
