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Spilled Milk

Published August 15, 2007
Countries: Greece
Age Levels: 5-6 and up

This is my lucky day said the young girl on her way to the market. My cow gave so much more milk today than usual. We had enough to feed our family. We had enough to give milk to the give to the old woman at the end of the lane. There is milk left. Mother and father said I may take it to the market to sell. And since it’s my birthday, I may keep the money the sale of the milk will bring.

She carried the milk in a bucket that she held upon her head.

“The coins I get from selling this milk will pay for a new hen," she said. “I will not share my hen with anyone. The hen will lay eggs, they'll hatch and then I'll buy a rooster. When I have enough chickens and eggs to sell, I will buy a goat. Then I can sell the goat’s milk and buy a sheep. I will sell the wool also buy a cow. Then I will sell the extra milk to buy a horse.

The horse will pull my carriage. I will have enough money to buy fine clothes. I will be invited to the best parties in town, and a handsome, rich man will ask to marry me. My husband will be a leader in the community, and everyone will bow down to him.

And, as she said this, she bowed.   As she bowed, she knocked the bucket off her head and spilled it on the road.

With her bow, she went from her dreams of being a married wealthy woman with everything she wanted back to being a poor single girl without a penny to her name.

She ran back to tell her mother about what had happened. As she cried about her loss, he mother told her, “Don’t cry over spilled milk.”