In a recent conversation, with Joonas (in our site's chat room), about chess, the well-known English idiom "can't see the wood for the trees" came up. This phenomenon--whether caused by a lack of intuition; succumbing to pressure; a "tunnel-vision" over-concentration on one detail, failing to see the bigger picture, which is right before the eyes--it has cost many a checkmate!
The Finnish version (Joonas) translates to "not seeing the forest for the trees". The German version and some off-the-wall theories on the English Language Learners site.
How did the Romans express this concept, if they did?
I can't find anything so a wild guess:
"lignum videre non possum, quia arbores id celarent."
"I can't see the wood, because the trees seem to have concealed it."
Any ideas?
