Count not your chickens before they are hatched

Amrita was a poor milk maid. She lived in a hamlet close to a town. Often she wished she were rich. But how! She did not know. Then she got a bright idea. She went to one of the rich cattle owners and said, "Will you give me milk on credit? I will take the milk to the town, sell it and make some profit." The villager agreed. Next morning, she collected the milk from the villager. She held them in two pots. She added some water to increase the quantity of milk. "Nobody will notice it. This way I will make more profit. I will become rich", she thought. Her fancy wandered, "I will become rich. I will buy a few hens. They will lay eggs. I will sell most of the eggs. Some of the eggs will hatch. When the chicks grow, they will give me more eggs. When I have put by enough money, I will buy a cow. The cow will give me milk. I will sell the milk. I will buy more cows. Soon I will have enough money to settle down with a man. We will have children. If my son or daughter misbehaves, I will hit the brat thus," she raised the stick and waved it wildly. The blow fell on the pots on her head. The pots broke. She was totally drenched in milk as it flowed down to the ground. With that ended all her dreams of making a rich profit by selling milk. She had counted the chickens before they were hatched.

Meaning: No man should take the future for granted. One can make plans for the future and work on them. At the same time he should know that even the best of the plans can go wrong. So one should be ready for unexpected reverses.

Alternatives: Don't build castles in the air.