- English translation
There is no tree the wind has not shaken.
- Literal wording
Every tree, except that the wind has shaken it.
- Meaning and lesson
The saying uses the image of trees bending in the wind to say that misfortune reaches everyone. Just as no tree escapes the wind, no person passes through life without being struck by some hardship, loss, or trial at one time or another.
In speech it serves to comfort someone who feels uniquely burdened, reminding them that suffering is a shared human condition. It can also humble someone who imagines themselves immune, since everyone, sooner or later, is shaken by something.
- When it is used
Suitable for consoling someone who feels singled out by trouble, or for gently reminding a person who mocks another's misfortune that nobody stays untouched. It works as a brief closing remark after hearing about someone's hardship.
Cite or copy proverb
How this record reached us: Editorially sourced.
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