When things in your life seem almost too much to handle, when 24 hours in a day are not enough, remember the mayonnaise jar and the coffee.

A professor stood before his philosophy class and had some things infront of him.

When the class began, wordlessly, he picked up a very large empty mayonnaise jar and proceeded to fill it with golf balls.

He asked the students if the jar was full. They agreed it was.

He 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.

Next he picked up a bag of sand and poured in into the jar. The sand filled up everything else. He asked again if the jar was full. The students responded with a unanimous yes.

Then he poured 2 cups of coffee into the jar. The students laughed.

Now said the professor, I want you to recognise that this jar represents your life.

The golf balls are the important things, your family, children, your faith, your health, friends and your favorite passions, things that if everything else was lost and they remained, your life would still be full.

The pebbles are the other things that matter, your job, house, car. The sand is everything else, the small stuff. If you put the sand in first there's no room for the golf balls and pebbles. The same goes for life, if you spend all your time and energy on the small things, you will never have room for the things that are important.

One of the students asked what the coffee meant. He smiled, I am 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!