Meaning
'If yuh cyaa get turkey, satisfy wid John Crow' — if you can't get turkey, be content with John Crow, the vulture. When you cannot have the best, make do gladly with what is available rather than going without, the proverb advises: settle for the lesser option and be satisfied. Setting the prized turkey against the despised carrion bird, it counsels a practical, uncomplaining acceptance of what one can actually get, teaching that something, even a poor something, beats holding out for a best that may never come.
Examples
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Di good one done, so tek dis one; if yuh cyaa get turkey, satisfy wid John Crow.
The good one's gone, so take this one; when you can't get the best, make do.
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Wi cyaa afford di big one yet — if yuh cyaa get turkey, satisfy wid John Crow.
We can't afford the big one yet — settle for what you can get.
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Nuh badda complain; if yuh cyaa get turkey, satisfy wid John Crow.
Don't complain; be content with the lesser thing when the best isn't available.
Origin
A contrast of birds: the turkey is prized eating while the John Crow (turkey vulture) is not — settling for John Crow is settling for far less than you wanted.
How it’s used
Said, sometimes ruefully, about making do with a lesser option. 'John Crow' is the Jamaican name for the turkey vulture.