Polish Proverb about the old woman

A poor man lived with his wife and six children in a very small one-room house. They were always getting in each other's way and there was so little space they could hardly breathe!

Finally the man could stand it no more. He talked to his wife and asked her what to do. "Go see the rabbi," she told him, and after arguing a while, he went.

The rabbi greeted him and said, "I see something is troubling you. Whatever it is, you can tell me."

And so the poor man told the rabbi how miserable things were at home with him, his wife, and the six children all eating and living and sleeping in one room. The poor man told the rabbi, "We're even starting to yell and fight with each other. Life couldn't be worse."

The rabbi thought very deeply about the poor man's problem. Then he said, "Do exactly as I tell you and things will get better. Do you promise?"

"I promise," the poor man said.

The rabbi then asked the poor man a strange question. "Do you own any animals?"

"Yes," he said. "I have one cow, one goat, and some chickens."

"Good," the rabbi said. "When you get home, take all the animals into your house to live with you."

The poor man was astonished to hear this advice from the rabbi, but he had promised to do exactly what the rabbi said. So he went home and took all the farm animals into the tiny one-room house.

The next day the poor man ran back to see the rabbi. "What have you done to me, Rabbi?" he cried. "It's awful. I did what you told me and the animals are all over the house! Rabbi, help me!"

The rabbi listened and said calmly, "Now go home and take the chickens back outside."

The poor man did as the rabbi said, but hurried back again the next day. "The chickens are gone, but Rabbi, the goat!" he moaned. "The goat is smashing up all the furniture and eating everything in sight!"

The good rabbi said, "Go home and remove the goat and may God bless you."

So the poor man went home and took the goat outside. But he ran back again to see the rabbi, crying and wailing. "What a nightmare you have brought to my house, Rabbi! With the cow it's like living in a stable! Can human beings live with an animal like this?"

The rabbi said sweetly, "My friend, you are right. May God bless you. Go home now and take the cow out of your house." And the poor man went quickly home and took the cow out of the house.

The next day he came running back to the rabbi again. "O Rabbi," he said with a big smile on his face, "we have such a good life now. The animals are all out of the house. The house is so quiet and we've got room to spare! What a joy!"

babkaThreads: 1 Posts: 5 Joined: Feb 11, 09	Feb 11, 09, 15:51 / #
I would like to find out the origin of the proverb, "The old woman never had any trouble until she bought herself a pig." Does it come from a folk tale? My grandmother Leokadya Ołejnicka Fiołek used this proverb. I don't speak/read Polish, and I have only found one reference to it in English, in the book, When Courage was Stronger than Fear, by Peter Hellman: "Mrs. Sabinska criticized what I had done with an ironical smile and a proverb--'Grandma didn't have any worries so she bought herself a little pig.'" Thanks!

Lir	Edited by: Lir Feb 11, 09, 18:07 / #
http://www.nationmaster.com/encyclopedia/List-of-Polish-proverbs Paragraph taken from this link. "Many Polish proverbs are original. Some are translations of Latin or German proverbs, while many others came from the Bible. The process of adapting and mixing proverbs between nations in Central Europe lasted for centuries, and in fact many proverbs now should be considered international rather than having a specific national origin." I googled for some more Polish proverbs from here:- http://www.famous-quotations.com/asp/proverbs.asp?ID=Polish+Proverb A hippo does not have a sting in its tail, but a wise man would still rather be sat on by a bee. Polish Proverb Better no doctor at all than three. Polish Proverb I have neither body nor soul, but when I play on my flute everything starts to dance. What am I? - The Wind. Polish Proverb If you love him, don't lend him. Polish Proverb Love enters a man through his eyes, woman through her ears. Polish Proverb One beggar does not hate another as much as one doctor hates another. Polish Proverb The greatest love is a mother's; Then comes a dog's, Then comes a sweetheart's... Polish Proverb Under capitalism man exploits man; under socialism the reverse is true. Polish Proverb

ladykangarooThreads: - Posts: 187 Joined: Jan 2, 09	Edited by: ladykangaroo Feb 12, 09, 01:18 / #
babka: Does it come from a folk tale? I would say it's of Jewish origin. There are two versions, one with little pig and another one with a goat. The goat one is quite similar to old Jewish story which comes in slightly varying versions but somehow the goat is always present. A poor man lived with his wife and six children in a very small one-room house. They were always getting in each other's way and there was so little space they could hardly breathe! Finally the man could stand it no more. He talked to his wife and asked her what to do. "Go see the rabbi," she told him, and after arguing a while, he went. The rabbi greeted him and said, "I see something is troubling you. Whatever it is, you can tell me." And so the poor man told the rabbi how miserable things were at home with him, his wife, and the six children all eating and living and sleeping in one room. The poor man told the rabbi, "We're even starting to yell and fight with each other. Life couldn't be worse." The rabbi thought very deeply about the poor man's problem. Then he said, "Do exactly as I tell you and things will get better. Do you promise?" "I promise," the poor man said. The rabbi then asked the poor man a strange question. "Do you own any animals?" "Yes," he said. "I have one cow, one goat, and some chickens." "Good," the rabbi said. "When you get home, take all the animals into your house to live with you." The poor man was astonished to hear this advice from the rabbi, but he had promised to do exactly what the rabbi said. So he went home and took all the farm animals into the tiny one-room house. The next day the poor man ran back to see the rabbi. "What have you done to me, Rabbi?" he cried. "It's awful. I did what you told me and the animals are all over the house! Rabbi, help me!" The rabbi listened and said calmly, "Now go home and take the chickens back outside." The poor man did as the rabbi said, but hurried back again the next day. "The chickens are gone, but Rabbi, the goat!" he moaned. "The goat is smashing up all the furniture and eating everything in sight!" The good rabbi said, "Go home and remove the goat and may God bless you." So the poor man went home and took the goat outside. But he ran back again to see the rabbi, crying and wailing. "What a nightmare you have brought to my house, Rabbi! With the cow it's like living in a stable! Can human beings live with an animal like this?" The rabbi said sweetly, "My friend, you are right. May God bless you. Go home now and take the cow out of your house." And the poor man went quickly home and took the cow out of the house. The next day he came running back to the rabbi again. "O Rabbi," he said with a big smile on his face, "we have such a good life now. The animals are all out of the house. The house is so quiet and we've got room to spare! What a joy!"