[Bumper]

I found this bit of philosophy particularly pithy, and insightful, and felt some of you might as well (especially Tommy).

A philosophy professor stood before his class. There were several items on the desk in front of him. When the class began, wordlessly he picked up a large, empty mayonnaise jar and proceeded to fill it with rocks about two inches in diameter.

When he had finished, he asked the students if the jar was full? They agreed that it was.

So the professor picked up a box of small pebbles and poured them into the jar. He shook the jar gently. The pebbles, of course, rolled into the empty spaces between the larger rocks. He then asked the students again if the jar was full. They answered that it was.

The professor picked up a box of sand and poured it into the jar. As you might expect, the sand flowed into all the remaining spaces between the pebbles and the rocks.

“Now, “ said the professor, “I want you to recognize that this is like your life. The rocks are the most important things - your family, your partner, your health, your children - 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 career, your home, your possessions. The sand is everything else. The small stuff.”

“If you put the sand into the jar first, there will be no room for the pebbles and the rocks. The same goes for your life. If you spend all your time and energy on the small stuff, you will never have room for the things that are really important to you.”

“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 dancing. There will always be time to go to work, clean the house, give a dinner party, or wash the car.”

“Take care of the rocks first - the things that really matter. Set your priorities. The rest is just sand.”

But then a student took the jar, which the other students and the professor had agreed was full, and proceeded to pour in a glass of beer.

Naturally, the beer flowed into the remaining spaces within the container making the jar truly full.

The moral of this tale is: No matter how full your life is, there is always room for beer.