“Where no oxen are, the manger is clean, but much revenue comes by the strength of the ox.” -Ancient Proverb
Whoever came up with the phrase “the sweet smell of success” couldn’t have meant it literally. The truth is that success generally brings with it a few less choice smells. This Proverb runs more true. If you want to make a profit, you will have to deal with a little mess from time to time. Did I say a little mess? What I meant to say is you’ll have to put up with a lot of crap. There’s no nice way to say it. Some people are great at sowing seed but when it comes to bringing in the fruit of their labor, they cut and run. That’s because to bring in the harvest it usually requires help and that means you have to deal with people and well, people often produce a lot of the brown stuff. So if you prefer to have a clean barn, all you have to do is get rid of the oxen. The smell will go away and so will your profits. But if you expect an increase from all you’ve sown, why not just get used to the brown stuff. It’s manageable and you might even find a use for it (can you say fertilizer?). And remember, no one said you had to sleep in the barn.
The Rock Church 