This is one of the wonderful stories from aesop’s fables for children. Molly was a milkmaid. It was her job to deliver milk to the market. In exchange, the people at the market would give Molly money for her milk. One of Molly’s favorite parts of being a milkmaid was deciding how to spend the money she earned. She’d walk along and think about all of the items she could buy.
Molly thought of buying a new pair of shoes. She thought about purchasing seeds for her garden. She thought about having a shiny new pail in which she could carry the milk. She also thought about buying a new fancy dress and a new doll to play with. While there was nothing wrong in thinking about all of the things she could buy, sometimes Molly would get so lost in her thoughts that she would forget about the milk she was carrying on her head. You may also like, The Bird With Two Necks.
One day, Molly filled her pail with milk. She placed the pail on her head and she headed off to the market. As she walked along the road, Molly once again thought of all the things she could buy with the money she received for the milk. She thought of buying a cake and a basket full of strawberries.
As she continued to walk, she spotted a chicken sitting at the side of the road. It was then that she had her best idea yet. Molly looked at the chicken and said, “With the money I get today, I’m going to buy a chicken of my own! That chicken will lay eggs. Then, I will be able to sell milk and eggs at the market and get more money to spend. With all that money, I can buy myself fancy new dresses that will make other milkmaids jealous! Oh! I can’t wait to get to the market and get my money today!”
Molly was so excited that she started skipping down the road, but she forgot about the milk pail she was carrying on her head. The milk started spilling over the edges. Soon, Molly was covered in milk. “Oh no! Now I’ll never have enough money to buy a chicken,” she exclaimed. She took the empty milk pail off her head and carried it back home.
“My goodness! What happened to you?” asked Molly’s mother when she walked in the door. “I was so busy dreaming about all the things I could buy with the milk money that I forgot about the bucket on my head,” Molly replied. “Oh, Molly dear! How many times do I need to tell you? Don’t count your chickens before they are hatched.” her mother sighed.
“What does that mean again?” Molly asked. “It means that you should focus on what you have rather than making plans based on what might be,” her mother replied. Molly knew her mother was right. She loved to dream, but finally, she’d try to remember to focus on delivering the milk successfully before thinking about all of the things she could buy with the money she was going to receive.
Here is a visual depiction of one of the wonderful aesop’s fables, “The Milkmaid And Her Pail Story”. See the video story below,