Les fourmis peuvent tuer un bœuf.
“Ants can kill an ox.”
Many small, weak forces acting together can overcome something far larger and stronger.
— Traditional Guadeloupe Wisdom, Guadeloupe
Source: Jean Joseph Appier Audain, Recueil de proverbes créoles (1877), public-domain compilation
More Proverbs from Guadeloupe
Take the lead before the lead takes you.
You must know how to anticipate trouble so it does not catch you by surprise.
Who bathes early dries quickly.
Those who act first reap the benefit; the early are best served.
It is not enough to lead a snake to school — you must also make it sit down.
Starting a project is not enough; the real difficulty is seeing it through to the end.
Yellow bananas do not turn green again.
Some changes cannot be undone; there is no going back once something has run its course.
True friends can be counted on one hand.
Genuine, trustworthy friendships are rare, however many acquaintances a person has.
Man says it without doing it; the good Lord does it without saying it.
People are often full of empty words, while real outcomes unfold quietly, without announcement.