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The tennis ball in the jar

c_scherer123

Member
Joined
Nov 7, 2010
Messages
38
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 put a tennis ball in it. Then he filled it the rest of the way with golf balls. He shook it and nothing shifted as it was so full.
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 then 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 space between the grains of sand.

“Now,” said the professor, as the laughter subsided, “I want you to recognize that this jar represents your life. The tennis ball is the way God wants us to run our life - our morals, our plans, our behaviors.

The golf balls are the important things – your family, your children, your health, your friends, and your favorite passions – things that if everything smaller 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, the golf balls, or the tennis ball.

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. Pray to God. Read the bible and follow His wishes. 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 tennis ball and the golf balls first, the things that really matter. Set your priorities. The rest is just sand.
If you try to put the smaller objects in your life first, then at the end some of the large objects will be unable to fit."

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.”
 
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