Yesterday I brought home two days worth of pumped milk and forgot to put it away. This morning I had to dump it down the sink - 27 ounces of milk from 1.25 hours of pumping. I told myself all morning that it's nothing to get upset about, but I couldn't stop crying about it. This all made me wonder about the origins of the phrase "Don’t cry over spilt milk." The literal meaning of the phrase never made much sense to me, it seemed to be such an overreaction to a minor accident. As a breastfeeding mother it gains new meaning. If you've made that milk yourself (and felt tired and dehydrated while doing it) and spent so much time pumping it (all the while not being able to actually nurse your baby, which is far, far better than pumping), losing a little, let alone 27 ounces, is heartbreaking.
Read more about the history of this old English proverb, which dates to at least the 17th century and etymology of the word “spill” at The Grammarphobia Blog.
2 comments:
Oh man... I feel for you! I just dumped (on purpose) old frozen milk from last summer that I had in our freezer.
Ezra's a lucky boy having a mama that has spent so much time and energy making milk for him!
Reading your post opened my mind a little more to crying over spilled milk. I agree with lady b, Ezra is a lucky boy. Breast feeding is only Ezra's start to good food. You guys will introduce him to a world of great eating habits. It will be his part to hold onto the importance of a good diet.
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