கிணற்றைத் தோண்டித் தண்ணீர் குடி
Kinatrai thondith thanneer kudi
Meaning
To drink water, you must first dig the well - effort always comes before reward.
Story
A family suffering through a dry summer had to carry water from a distant well every day. A neighbour asked, "why not dig your own well right in your yard?" After the hard work of digging, they had water for good.
Reader's Note
It's better to put in the real effort once than to keep taking shortcuts that never last.