Stare at a gutter long enough and you'll catch fish. It sounds like nonsense at first. Who finds fish in a gutter? But that's the sly trick of this Nigerian proverb, which uses an unlikely picture to make a very down to earth point. A person who stares at the gutter for a long time will kill fish, it says. Strip away the image and the message is plain. Stick with something long enough, watch it closely enough, refuse to walk away, and sooner or later it pays off. The saying comes from the Ondo people of southwestern Nigeria, and at heart it's a quiet hymn to patience. Not the dramatic kind. The stubborn, unglamorous kind that keeps showing up after everyone else has given up and gone home.
Get breaking news anytime, anywhere. Download the TOI app now!
