Wala shagara ella we hazzaha el rih

Translation: A tree doesn’t exist that hasn’t shaken in the wind

Meaning: This outdated proverb deserves a revival if only for its poetic composition. Man is a tree, trees will shake in the wind, man will shake in the wind of circumstance as well. No one is too important, too weighty, too wise, too mighty not to be shaken every now and then. After the fall, just take a deep breath, flick the dirt off your shirt, and walk tall, for that too shall pass.

Source: Egyptian Proverbs, (Al-Ahram Center for Translation and Publishing, 1986) by Ahmed Taymour Pasha,

Translated by: Nabil Shawkat