A story hijacked from Facebook...you're welcome!
COWS DON’T GIVE MILK
A father used to say to his children when they were young: —When you all reach the age of 12 I will tell you the secret of life. One day when the oldest turned 12, he anxiously asked his father what was the secret of life. The father replied that he was going to tell him, but that he should not reveal it to his brothers.
The secret of life is this:
The cow does not give milk.
"What are you saying?" Asked the boy incredulously. —As you hear it, son: The cow does not give milk, you have to milk it. You have to get up at 4 in the morning, go to the field, walk through the corral full of manure, tie the tail, hobble the legs of the cow, sit on the stool, place the bucket and do the work yourself.
That is the secret of life, the cow does not give milk. You milk her or you don't get milk. There is this generation that thinks that cows GIVE milk. That things are automatic and free: their mentality is that if "I wish, I ask..... I obtain."
"They have been accustomed to get whatever they want the easy way...But no, life is not a matter of wishing, asking and obtaining. The things that one receives are the effort of what one does. Happiness is the result of effort. Lack of effort creates frustration."
So, share with your children from a young age the secret of life, so they don't grow up with the mentality that the government, their parents, or their cute little faces is going to give them everything they need in life.
Remember "Cows don't give milk; you have to work for it."
~Author Unknown
This message, while pertinent to our youth, is a necessary reminder for all who are reading. We have all grown accustom to simplified efforts. Thank you technology. Messaging has crept into our social norm that everyone is a winner. And our timeline for success has shrunk [to immediate]. And because of these trends, not many people would be willing to grab the bucket and stool and hoof it out into a manure laden pasture to milk a cow.
Another tale of farm life comes to mind, The Little Red Hen, do you know it? The little red hen asks, "who will help me..." to which she receives a resounding, "NOT I" from her animal housemates. However, once the work is finished, and the warm delicious loaf of bread is resting in the window, the little red hen calls, "who will help me eat..."...and we all know how that story ends.
"Milk"..."bread", be it the figurative term for whatever you may be hoping to obtain, must be worked for. There is no time to sit on hands and let wishing be the prioritized contribution to your dreams. And furthermore, there is no one else who will do the work for you.
Be the hen. Go get the milk.
The Elkhorn Chamber
submitted by Kate Abbe