Once upon a time, a teacher stood in front of his class, took a large glass jar and, without saying a word, filled it with a few large stones. Then he asked his pupils if the jar was full. They all agreed to say YES.
Then he took a handful of small pebbles and poured them into the jar. The pebbles filled the empty spaces. He asked the students again if the jar was full. They said YES again.
He continued, confidently, with a bag filled with sand and poured it into the jar… Sure enough, the sand filled all the empty spaces and he asked them again if the jar was full. The students unanimously answered YES.
And then the teacher added two cups of coffee to the contents of the jar! The coffee again filled the spaces between the grains of sand. And finally he poured in hot water… even for the water, there had been plenty of room!
The students then began to laugh…When they had finished, the teacher said:
“I want you to realize that the jar of stones symbolizes life. The stones are the important things like family, children, food, health, and everything that excites. Even if we lose everything that fills the gaps, it’s up to us to make sure the essential things stay. The pebbles are the other things that count, like the house, the chairs, the bed… The sand represents everything else, the little things in life. If we had poured the sand in first, there would have been no room for deep relationships.
If we spend all our energy and time on the little things, we’ll never have room for the bonds of the heart. Give attention to the things that contribute to your happiness: parents, friends, sports, creative activities… There will always be time for the little things… Set your priorities, the rest is just sand.”
One of the students raised his hand and asked what coffee was. The teacher smiled and said, “Good of you to ask. It was just to show you that, no matter how busy your lives may seem, there will always be room for a cup of coffee with a friend.”