Once upon a time, a man and his wife had the good fortune to have a goose which laid a golden egg every day. Lucky though they were, they soon began to think they were not getting rich fast enough.
They imagined that if the bird is able to lay golden eggs, its insides must be made of gold. And they thought that if they could get all that precious metal at once, they would get mighty rich very soon. So the man and his wife decided to kill the bird.
However, upon cutting the goose open, they were shocked to find that its innards were like that of any other goose!
MORAL: THINK BEFORE YOU ACTMore about the story
Kill not the goose that lays golden eggs is a popular proverb in English that is rooted in this story.
When we use this proverb, we mean that anyone who feels entitled to, and tries to get more than he is already receiving, is most likely to get nothing at all in the future.
Read the following example:
Young Johnny had a very kind and generous uncle. Every time Johnny visited him with his parents, he was given five cents. One day, Johnny thought of buying a bike. The next time he met his uncle, he asked him for 50 dollars. “50 dollars?” exclaimed his uncle. “That is a lot of money!”
“Well, you can afford it, and I want to buy a bike,” said Johnny. “You don’t have any children, so you should have a lot of money.”
Johnny’s uncle was very angry. He did not like Johnny’s attitude.
Johnny did not get 50 dollars. He did not get his five cents also any more.
He had killed the goose that laid golden eggs. If he had been wiser, he would have at least got his five cents.
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