اللي إيده بالنار مش زي اللي إيده بالمي-اللهجة الفلسطينية

The proverb says: “The one whose hand is in the fire is not like the one whose hand is in the water.”

There was a girl named Reem, the oldest among her siblings. Ever since her father became ill, she had carried the entire responsibility of the house on her shoulders. She worked mornings at a clothing shop, then came home to cook, clean, and take care of her brothers and sisters.

Their neighbor Rana would always see her exhausted and rushing around, and would sarcastically say:
“Why do you always look upset? Enjoy your life a little.”

Reem would stay silent.

One day, Rana came to visit her in the afternoon. She found the house in chaos: the stove was on, the phone was ringing, and Reem’s little brother was crying because he needed someone to help him study.

Rana said, annoyed:
“How do you handle all this? I got sick of it in half an hour!”

Reem was sitting on the floor, quickly chopping vegetables while trying to answer her manager on the phone. She looked up and said:
“And this is just a normal day for me.”

Rana went quiet.

A little later, the electricity went out, the boy spilled juice on the carpet, and the phone kept ringing.

Rana got frustrated and shouted:
“No, no, that’s enough! I’m leaving… I can’t take this!”

For the first time, Reem laughed sincerely and said:
“See? The one whose hand is in the fire is not like the one whose hand is in the water.”

Only then did Rana truly understand the meaning of the proverb.

This proverb is used when we judge something as easy or simple because we are far from it and don’t truly understand how difficult it really is.