'A Glass Jar' or Important Things

A Teacher walks into a classroom and sets a glass jar on the table. He starts placing large rocks in the jar until no more can fit. Then he looks at the students and asks them if the jar is full and they agree it is. He smiles and then pulls out a pile of small pebbles, adding them to the jar, shaking it slightly until they fill the spaces between the rocks.

He asks again, “Is the jar full?” They agree. So next, he adds a scoop of sand to the jar, filling the space between the pebbles and asks the question again. This time, the class is divided, some feeling that the jar is obviously full, but others are wary of another trick. So he grabs a pitcher of water and fills the jar to the brim.

Then he says, “The rocks represent the big things in your life. The pebbles are the other things in your life. The sand represent the ‘small stuff’ that fills our time. Had you filled this jar with sand first, there was no room for pebbles or rocks.”

A student curiously asked : “What is water?”
He took a deep breath and said “No matter how busy you are - you can always find time for a glass of tea with a good friend.”