I bought a 54-acre ranch to teach my kids self-reliance. Then I lost millions overnight and learned another lesson. Brent Phillips bought a ranch for his family and ended up a short-term rental owner. Milk & Honey Ranch Brent Phillips transformed his Texas ranch into a rental to support his family financially. He first rented out space above his garage to help pay his bills and expenses. Phillips' 54-acre ranch now has 40 units and can fit 150 guests. This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with Brent Phillips, 47, a software engineer who started renting out units on his guest ranch in Burton, Texas, to help pay bills. The following has been edited for length and clarity. I've been a software engineer my whole career. I had built a couple of companies and worked for some companies, always doing software engineering. I'm originally from South Africa, but my brother got recruited to play rugby in Aspen, Colorado, so that's how I came to live in America.…