I Wanna Rock
This little story was forwarded to me by a friend some time ago. Neither of us knows who to attribute the story to, but that has never stopped me from posting such things.
A philosophy professor stood before his class and had some items in front of
him. When the class began, wordlessly he picked up a large empty mayonnaise
jar and proceeded to fill it with rocks, rocks about 2" in diameter. He then
asked the students if the jar was full? They agreed that it was.
So the professor then picked up a box of pebbles and poured them into the
jar. He shook the jar lightly. The pebbles, of course, rolled into the open
areas between the rocks. He then asked the students again if the jar was
full. They agreed it was. The students laughed.
The professor picked up a box of sand and poured it into the jar. Of course,
the sand filled up everything else.
"Now," said the professor, "I want you to
recognize that this is your life. The rocks are the important things - your
family, your partner, your health, your children - 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 like your job, your house, your
car. The sand is everything else. The small stuff."
"If you put the sand into
the jar first, there is no room for the pebbles or the rocks. The same goes
for your 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 dancing. There
will always be time to go to work, clean the house, give a dinner party and
fix the disposal."
"Take care of the rocks first - the things that really
matter. Set your priorities. The rest is just sand."
Posted by ac at June 30, 2003 11:57 PM