LIFE ISN'T A SANDY BEACH - IT'S THE ROCKS

A philosophy professor stood before his class and had
some items in front of him. When class
began, wordlessly he picked up a large empty mayonnaise
jar and proceeded to fill it with rocks right to the
top, rocks about 2" 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 in to the jar. He shook
the jar lightly. The pebbles, of course, rolled
into the open areas between the rocks.

The students laughed. He asked his students again if the jar was
full? They agreed that yes, 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. "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 -
anything that is so important to you that if it were
lost, you would be nearly destroyed. The pebbles are
the other things in life that matter, but on a
smallerscale. The pebbles represent things like your
job,your house, your car. The sand is everything else.
The small stuff."

"If you put the sand or the pebbles into the jar
first, there is no room for the rocks. The same goes
for your life.If you spend all your energy and time on
the small stuff, material things, you will never have room for
the things that are truly most important.

Pay attention to the things that are critical in your
life. Play with your children. Take time to get
medical checkups. Take your partner out dancing. Call
a friend. 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 pebbles and sand.