No thing great is created suddenly, any more than a bunch of grapes or a fig. If you tell me that you desire a fig, I answer you that there must be time. Let it first blossom, then bear fruit, then ripen.
Οὐδέν, ἔφη, τῶν μεγάλων ἄφνω γίνεται, ὅπου γε οὐδ᾿ ὁ βότρυς οὐδὲ σύκον. ἄν μοι νῦν λέγῃς ὅτι 'θέλω σύκον', ἀποκρινοῦμαί σοι ὅτι 'χρόνου δεῖ'. ἄφες ἀνθήσῃ πρῶτον, εἶτα προβάλῃ τὸν καρπόν, εἶτα πεπανθῇ.
Original text (Ancient Greek)