> When things in your life seem almost too much to
> handle, when 24 hours
> in a day are not enough, remember the mayonnaise
> jar... and the
> coffee...
>
> A professor stood before his philosophy class and
> had some items in
> front of him. When the class began, wordlessly, he
> picked up a very
> large and empty mayonnaise jar and proceeded to fill
> it with golf balls.
> He then asked the students if the jar was full. They
> agreed that it was.
>
> The professor then picked up a box of pebbles and
> poured them into the
> jar. He shook the jar lightly. The pebbles rolled
> into the open areas
> between the golf balls. He then asked the students
> again if the jar was
> full. They agreed it was.
>
> The professor next picked up a box of sand and
> poured it into the jar.
> Of course, the sand filled up everything else. He
> asked once more if the
> jar was full. The students responded with an
> infamous "yes." The
> professor then produced two cups of coffee from
> under the table and
> poured the entire contents into the jar, effectively
> filling the empty
> space between the sand.
>
> The students laughed.
>
> "Now," said the professor, as the laughter subsided,
> "I want you to
> recognize that this jar represents your life".
>
> The golf balls are the important things - your
> family, your children,
> your faith, your health, your friends, and your
> favourite passions.
> Things, that if everything else was lost and only
> they remained, your
> life would still be full.
>
> The pebbles are the other things that matter - your
> job, your house, and
> your car.
>
> The sand is everything else - the small stuff.
>
> If you put the sand into the jar first," he
> continued, there is no room
> for the pebbles or the golf balls.
>
>
>
> The same goes for life. If you spend all your time
> and energy on the
> small stuff, you will never have room for the things
> that are important
> to you.
>
> Pay attention to the things that are critical to
> your happiness.
>
>
> Play with your children. Take time to get medical
> checkups.
>
> Take your partner out to dinner. Play another 18.
> There will always be
> time to clean the house and fix the disposal.
>
> Take care of the golf balls first, the things that
> really matter. Set
> your priorities.
>
>
> The rest is just sand."
>
> One of the students raised her hand and inquired
> what the coffee
> represented.
>
> The professor smiled. "I'm glad you asked. It just
> goes to show you that
> no matter how full your life may seem, there's
> always room for a couple
> of cups of coffee with a friend."
>
>
>