proverb · Words worth keeping
Every bird must hatch her own egg.
Every bird must hatch her own egg.
Understand the thought
Meaning in plain English
Each person has responsibilities that others cannot completely fulfil on their behalf. The bird tending its own egg points to a necessary personal contribution, while leaving room for shared care, practical support and different capacities.
Example
A student accepts help organising revision sessions but still needs to identify questions they do not understand and attempt the practice exercises themselves.
Deeper explanation and when to use it
The egg gives the bird a particular task to attend to. Applied to people, the image can distinguish receiving assistance from handing away all responsibility for a commitment. Someone else may offer advice, materials or time, but certain choices and contributions still belong to the person concerned. The word every should not erase circumstances in which help or a different arrangement is needed. Responsibility can be shared, and some tasks cannot reasonably be managed alone. A useful reading identifies which part genuinely requires personal participation and which parts can be supported, rather than making self-reliance a test of worth.
When to use it
Use it when assistance needs to be distinguished from a person’s own necessary participation.
Keep in mind
Personal responsibility does not rule out collective care, accessibility support or a fair division of work.
An interpretation of the words, not a claim about their earliest origin.
Attribution & collection notes
- Author or tradition
- Traditional
Attribution: traditional - Country attributed
- Not established
A country attribution does not establish the earliest origin. - Historical period
- Date unknown
- Culture
- English