Monday, July 20, 2009

The empty jar and two cups of coffee!

A random forward that I loved and therefore had to share!

"When things in your life seem almost too much to handle. When 24 Hours in a day is not enough, remember the story of the empty jar and 2 cups of 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 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 - God, family, children, health, friends, and favorite 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 like your job, house, and 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.

So...


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.

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 cup of coffee with a friend.' "

9 comments:

AM said...

normally i dont like the email fwds very much... but this was a lovely read.

Aparna said...

cool.....n that means, whenever we meet next, we're definately doing coffee :)

Vaishali said...

Hi Maddy, what a beautiful story, and well told!
Thanks for your kind comments on my blog-- I'm so happy you enjoyed reading through Holy Cow!, and I deeply appreciate your words and the fact that you are a kindred soul. Keep rocking!

Vaishali said...

Maddy, about the tofu and marinade, perhaps you could try marinading the tofu for a little longer or even overnight. Mind you, you will still have a bland center because the marinade won't easily go all the way through.
I also heard of this tip which sounds like a good one, although I've never tried it myself: try freezing the tofu and then thaw it. This makes it more spongy, after which it absorbs the marinade more readily.
You can also try alternatives to tofu, like some sauteed mushrooms or even lightly fried potatoes.
Hope that helps :)

Vishnu said...

Came to this post from a long shot, ... (from here ... http://www.simblybored.com/?p=1564#comments ).
I heard this story separately from my dept chair, where a Harvard business school professor took the place of the professor in your story. And coffee was replaced by water, and there was no mention of coffee with a friend. Prioritizing remained the gist and morale of the story but Coffee wasn't there in the story at all... (apparently my dept. chair's brother studied in Harvard and personally heard this story :) ...)
Glad to hear the story in a different perspective, good post.

the Provident Woman said...

I love that story.
theprovidentwoman.com

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