せっかく　translation

Hello,

Please help me with translation for the second sentence:

やくばりじさんは うすを もやしてしまいました。
「せっかくの うすが はいになってしまった。」

I think, i can translate first one as
"Old greedy man burned the mortar."

But I am not sure about translation for the second one.
Probably, it mean "My precious mortar turned into ashes."

Thank you very much!

よくばりじいさんは うすを もやしてしまいました。
"Old greedy man burned the mortar."
Greedy old man burnt the mortar.

*Usu (mortar) here is used to make mochi (rice cake), and traditionally it is made of wood. Just a side note.

「せっかくの うすが はいになってしまった。」
But I am not sure about translation for the second one.
Probably, it mean "My precious mortar turned into ashes."

Ah, せっかく is really hard to translate - it is to express negative feeling such as disappointment, regret, etc. when one feels something was wasted or came to nothing.
In this context, I think your translation is very good to convey the feeling of the speaker.

Thank you very much for your kind help. I very sorry for my mistakes, thank you for correcting me.