mayonnaise jar and 2 cups of coffee (life lesson)

[x Baldwin Motion]

kind of campy, but a classic that becomes more true with each day. - XBM


When things in your lives seem almost too much to handle, when 24 hours in a day are not enough, remember the mayonnaise jar and the 2 cups of coffee.

A professor stood before his philosophy class and had some items in front of him. When the class began, he wordlessly 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 unanimous "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 health, your friends and your favorite passions--and if everything else was lost and only they remained, your life would still be full. The pebbles are the other things that matter like 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 spouse 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."

[Born30YrsLate]

...I've heard the same story, but the coffee was replaced with beer...

[nuch_ss396]

I love it!

Nuch

[1968 nova ss]

Well put;i think we all get caught with the (pebbles and sand sometimes) and we must be reminded sometimes, what really important;good job.Chris Teed

[ronebee]

listen:

You gotta be careful with that story.

I have a sister in law who is an onacoligist (cancer doctor) who married a boy 15 years her junior,he is pretty and dumber than a bag of rocks. This is her second marriage (first guy was 8 years younger). She pulls in high $200k a year and this clown adds about 25K (maybe) to the purse and can't figure out how to clean his shorts. Get the picture?

This guy lays this "mayonnaise jar" wrap on her to why he isn't cleaning the house and mowing the lawn and how maybe she needs to slow down and smell the roses. My sister in law sends this dude to Vegas for a week every summer for a star trek convention with two costumes, no [censored], I can't make this up, and this little punk is telling her to slow down? So my sister in law sent this to her sister and me because maybe we are running "to hard" as well. What the?
I could tell you more but it makes me sick talkng about it.I'm not kidding, I actually have about two hours of material for a stand up act about my inlaws that I know I could probabley score a network spot about, its stuff you just couldn't make up, its actually scary and funny.

Listen, I agree with this whole thing, life is fast and taking time for things like friends and family are important, but remember to rip like a twister and run like there is no tommorrow. Life is short, make your mark.

[nuch_ss396]

Ron,

Any more like your sister-in-law available at your end?

I chose poorly the first time, this sounds interesting....

Nuch

[ronebee]

No, but as long as your asking, let me tell you about my father in law. He is a retired minister and I'm pretty sure in his working life he paid for very little.

I have renamed him "T-Rex" as when we take him out for dinner to a restaurant he always eats plenty, just like a "T-Rex", but he has short arms, just like a T-Rex, so he can never grab for the check.

Don't get me started.