LIVING YOUR LIFE TO THE FULLEST

I would like to share with you a story I came across a few days ago.A professor stood before his philosophy class and had some items in front of him. When the class began, he picked up a very large and empty mayonnaise jar and proceeded to fill it with golf balls. He then asked the students if the jar was full. They agreed that it was.

Next he picked up a box of pebbles and poured them into the jar. He shook the jar lightly until 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 a 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 recognise that this jar represents your life. The golf balls are the important things—your faith, your family, your children, your health, your friends and your favourite passions---and 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 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 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.”

One of the students raised her hand and asked 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 cups of coffee with a friend”.

There are many lessons to be learnt from the above story. Firstly, is to value time. Just how big is our “mayonnaise jar of life”? We simply don’t know. Maybe there are space left in our “jar” or it is almost “filled to the brim”. So, from now on, ponder on your life. Where have you spent it on? “Sand” or “golf balls”?

Next, we must know how to prioritise. Fill the jar with the golf balls first. In short, invest time and emphasise on matters that means the most to you. Don’t neglect your parents for the sake of your job. Take time off for vacation with your family. Exercise and do regular medical check-ups because your family, money and material gains will not matter if you are always sickly. Also, don’t forget to allocate time for religion. Once you are able to balance your life and manage your time effectively, you can be sure of living your life to the fullest.