This proverb refers to the tendency to imagine or dwell on the notion that other people have nicer things...like your neighbor having a nicer lawn. 

The original source of this proverb is Ovid's "Art of Love", a book of advice for men and women about finding and keeping romantic relationships, written over 2000 years ago, about 2 AD:

One lesson from this proverb is to focus more on what you have, ignoring what others may have that is better. Another lesson might be to put your attention on improving your own situation (like watering your lawn) rather than dwelling on the fact that your lawn (or situation in general) is inferior.

An interesting variation on this proverb is: "The grass is always greener where you water."

Similar proverbs from other cultures:

Hindi:

Chinese:

Japanese:

Russian:

Methali hii inahusiana na tabia ya kufikiria kwamba watu wengine wana vitu vizuri zaidi, hali nzuri zaidi nk... Kwa mfano kufikiri jirani yako ana majani mazuri kuliko wewe.

Chanzo cha methali hii ni "Sanaa ya Upendo" na Ovid, kitabu cha mashairi yaliyotungwa ili kutoa shauri kwa wanaume na wanawake kuhusu kutafuta na kudumisha mahusiano ya kimapenzi. Kitabu hiki kiliandikwa zaidi ya miaka 2000 iliyopita, takribani 2 KK:

 - Ovid Ars Amatoria (Sanaa ya Upendo), Ukurasa wa 24

Kwa upande mmoja, methali hii inamaanisha, bora kushika kile ulicho nacho, na kupuuza kile ambacho wengine wanacho, hata kama inaonekana ni bora zaidi. Lakini pia kwa mtazamo mwengine, inamaanisha bora kutumia akili yako katika kuboresha hali yako mwenyewe (kama kumwagilia shamba lako) badala ya kufikiria sana ukweli kwamba shamba lako, au hali kwa ujumla, ni duni. Methali nyingine ni "Majani huonekana ya kijani zaidi pale ambapo yalipomwagiliwa maji." 

Methali zinazofanana kikanuni:
Kihindi: 

Kichina: 

Kijapani:

Kurusi:

Have you ever noticed that time seems to pass more slowly when you are waiting for something? On the other hand, if you distract yourself with other engaging activities, time goes by quickly.

For example, if you're in a waiting room for a doctor, the wait will seem shorter if you check your phone or read a magazine, rather than just waiting for your name being called.

This proverb was attributed by Benjamin Franklin to Poor Richard's Almanac, however it doesn't actually appear there. Instead, Franklin used it in an essay on animal magnetism in 1785.

One day a renown businessman wanted to hire an assistant. He received many resumes, but only two candidates met his high standards: Alice and Bob. To help him decide, he called both, and they each agreed to come in for an interview the following morning. "9 AM. Look sharp and don't be late." The manager warned.

The next morning Alice woke up early, donned her best suit and got to the village bus station at 8:00am. "Better safe than sorry," she thought.  On the way to town, the front of the minibus began to smoke. The driver pulled over in the bush and told all the passengers to get out. Just then it started to rain. Alice tried to wave down each bus that passed, but they were all full, so she had to walk on foot. 9am came and went, but Alice was still miles from town and the rain was getting harder. "I must keep going." she thought, "Better late than never."

Meanwhile in town, Bob woke up in his apartment, and saw the sun was high in the sky. He sat up suddenly. "Oh no! Why did my alarm fail?" He looked at the clock on his wall: 9:00 am. "Forget it. Even if I leave right now, I'll still be late, and they'll never hire someone who is late." So Bob, feeling depressed, went back to sleep.

At 10:30, Alice finally made it to the office and knocked on the door, her neatly pressed suit now dripping and muddy. The businessman answered.
"I warned you to be on time, yet you are over an hour late, how can you expect me to give you this job?"
Then Alice explained all that had happened.
"I have learned a lot about you from this story, Alice. When you have a purpose in mind, you persist despite and obstacles and don't give up, even when it seems too late. In fact, you are the first to arrive today. The other candidate did not show up at all. The job is yours."

Great achievements and inventions often begin with a lot of failures, but in the long run, persistence and learning are rewarded.  People make a lot of mistakes (to err is human), but life is very patient with us, giving us lots of chances to learn from them and try again, as long as we don't give up.

Some say the proverb "Better late than never" comes from The Canterbury Tales, written by Chaucer around the 1390s.

Others trace the proverb to an even earlier origin, in Livy's History of Rome, written around 20 BC:

A similar saying in English is "It's never too late." 
Here's a proverb that relates to the same principle in Hindi:

And here's an English proverb that often means the opposite of this one: