What's the equal and opposite proverb of "Variety is the spice of life"?
It is a little-known law that most proverbs have an equal and opposite. For example...
- Too many cooks spoil the broth: Many hands make light work.
- Fortune favours the brave: Fools rush in where angels fear to tread.
- Actions speak louder than words: The pen is mightier than the sword.
- A bird in hand is worth two in the bush: Nothing ventured nothing gained.
- Etc...
What's a good antiproverb for "Variety is the spice of life"? I can't find one at the moment. I guess it would need to be something about preferring routine, having a favourite, or the benefits of doing things in a consistent way.
Solution 1:
- If it's not broken, don't fix it.
Cambridge Dictionary gives the less formal version:
if it ain't broke, don't fix it
said when you recognize that something is in a satisfactory state, and there is no reason to try to change it
Solution 2:
How about:
- Better the devil you know, than the devil you don't.
It is often used in relation to dealing with new people - but it would also apply more widely to other choices such as you describe.
Solution 3:
The grass is always greener on the other side
Since "variety is the spice of life" implies constantly looking for new experiences as a good thing, this one implies that you should stick to what you already have, and you're looking for new experiences because you don't value the ones you already have.
Solution 4:
To the extent that "variety is the spice of life" implies that change is necessary for happiness, a contrary (though not exactly opposite) proverb might be "A contented mind is a continual feast." Here is the entry for that proverb in Martin Manser, The Facts on File Dictionary of Proverbs (2002):
a contented mind is a continual feast Those who are satisfied with their lot in life are far happier than those who are constantly striving for something better: "'...although I take fifty pounds a year here after taking above two hundred elsewhere, I prefer it to running the risk of having my domestic experiences raked up against me, as I should do if I tried to make a move.' 'Right you are. A contented mind is a continual feast.'" (Thomas Hardy, Jude the Obscure, 895). The proverb was first recorded in 1535 in the form "A quiet heart is a continual feast" (Miles Coverdale, Bible Proverbs {15:15}).
The implication of the proverb is that the way to achieve happiness is not by trying new things or avoiding routine but by being satisfied with what one already has (and does).