The Sky-Fearing Man of Qi
Story behind the idiom: 杞人憂天 - 'The Sky-Fearing Man of Qi'
很久很久以前，杞国有个人天天抬头看天。Long, long ago, in the state of Qi, there was a man who looked up at the sky every day.他怕天突然掉下来把大家压扁。He feared the sky might suddenly fall and crush everyone.结果吃不好睡不着，还到处提醒邻里要提防这场「灾难」。As a result, he ate poorly, couldn’t sleep, and went around warning the villagers to guard against this “disaster.”
村里一位老者听了，笑着说：「天只是高高的气层，地只是厚厚的土层。」An elder in the village heard this and laughed, saying, 'The sky is only a high layer of air, and the earth is only a thick layer of soil.'他补充说：「它们各安其位，根本不会说塌就塌。」He added, 'They each hold their place and certainly won’t just collapse.'那位杞国人才恍然大悟。The man from Qi suddenly realized the truth.从此，人们就用「杞人忧天」来形容那些胡思乱想、为不可能的事担心的人。From then on, people used 'Qi ren you tian' to describe those who worry needlessly about impossible matters.
现在我们也常用这个成语。Nowadays, we also often use this idiom.比如朋友考试才刚交卷，就整晚失眠，担心自己全写错。For example, a friend has just submitted an exam, then stays up all night worrying they wrote everything wrong.
这时，你可以安慰他：「别杞人忧天啦，好好睡一觉吧！」At this point, you can comfort him by saying, 'Don’t be a worrier of Qi; get a good night’s sleep!'
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