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> It's like the feast of Ngchesar, postponed till tomorrow, then the next, and forever. You keep saying tomorrow, tomorrow. You're lucky there's a tomorrow. Presumably, in the past the village of Ngchesar in central Palau tried and tried again to schedule a mur, the largest, villagewide feast conducted in Palau. But for various reasons the feast was forever postponed. The saying applies to the risk of procrastination. |
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> A male child, though small, is yet like a small barracuda that braces against the flowing stream. The small barracuda (mersaod, a small ai) can be seen bracing, without apparent motion, against the stream, usually where fresh water flows into the lagoon, or where tide water runs off the reef, until suddenly it dashes into the stream to grab a small fish. Then it retreats once more to its place of watchfulness. This watchful, quiet, reserved, almost crafty approach to life is much admired, and parents will encourage their male children with this saying. |
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> Like the people of Ngerechelong, standing together on the base of the coconut tree. The mound or hump that forms at the base of the coconut tree is said to represent the highest ranking village clan. The leader of that clan is spoken of as "standing on the mound." In the idiom, it is suggested that the people of Ngerechelong (northern Palau) would all like to be leaders-all standing on the mound at the same time. The idiom may be applied where too many people try to direct an operation; too many leaders. |
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> Even though we fix our own betel-nut, we get burned. Chemachel is a "betelnut package" consisting of the seeded nut, the pepper leaf (kebui), and the lime (chaus). By applying too much lime to a "package" it is possible to burn one's mouth. Although this is sometimes done among young people to signal another secretly of sexual attraction, typically it happens accidentally. The idiom implies that everyone makes mistakes; it can't be helped. No matter how careful we are, we sometimes fail; we shouldn't be too sure or overconfident in ourselves. |
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> Like the terriid, in the taro garden but hungry The terriid, a bird, is often seen in the taro garden but, unlike the purple swamp hen which eats taro corms, the terriid seems to eat nothing. The idiom may apply to anyone who works hard without recognition, or to a man frequently in the company of women but with no success as a lover. |
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