This note was in the "Family Thoughts" section of our newsletter and I found it to be so relevant to the way I live my life and it's such a beautiful message. I hope you all can put this to use in your own lives.

"A professor stood before his Philosophy 101 class and had some items in front of him. When the class began, he wordlessly picked up a very large and empty jar and proceeded to fill it up with golf balls. He then asked the students if the jar was full. They agreed that it was.

The professor then picked up a box of pebbles and poured them into the jar. He shook the jar lightly and 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 next 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 unamimuos 'yes'.

The professor then produced two Pepsi's from under hte 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 recognize that this jar represents your life.'

The golf balls are the important things-your family, your children, your health, your friends, and your favorite passion-and if everything else was lost and only those things 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 or pebbles into the jar first, there is no room for the golf balls-no room for the really important things.

The same goes for life. If you spend all of your time and energy on the small stuff you will never have room for the things that are important. Pay attention to the things that are critical to your happiness. Spend time with God. Spend time with your children and spouse. Spend time with your parents. Visit grandparents. Take your spouse out to dinner. There will always be time to clean the house or fix the disposal. Take care of the things that really matter and could be gone tomorrow. The rest is just sand.

One of the students raised her hand and inquired what the Pepsi's represented. The professor smiled adn said, 'I am glad you asked.' The Pepsi just shows you no matter how full your life may seem, there is always room for a couple of Pepsi's with a friend.

*As always, the newsletter is something I look forward to and I usually read it right away. This comes at a very relevant time in our life. We, like a lot of people, want a bigger house, nicer cars, and to be able to vacation more. With Chad's work being so slow right now, we have discussed the issue of me going back to teaching. There are three things that have made that decision easy for us-1) Schools are not hiring right now, especially teachers with Masters degrees. 2) My starting salary is only 40K a year and daycare in Denver is $1000.00 per child. We would have two in full time care and one in p/t care, for a total daycare bill of around $2500.00 per month. Whatever would be left, if any, is not enough to put my babies in the care of someone who is not as educated as me, not as loving as me, and who doesn't have a vested interest in the moral development of my children. And finally, my children mean the world to me and I take my role as their parent very seriously. My goal is to educate them and instill in them self worth, morals, faith, a love of serving, knowledge, and acceptance. There simply is no one better to care for them than myself. I often think this slightly morbid though 'If I died tomorrow, I would be so happy with what I have accomplished'. Of course those accomplishments are my children, my marriage, and my relationship with others. I am proud to have earned a Masters degree and to be an educator, but that is second to my family. I look forward to the days when we can take our children on mission trips, possibly adopt a child from an impoverished country, or volunteer our skills as a teacher and an architect to help others. This message in the newsletter had a profound effect on me and I hope it makes all the read it think about the truly important things in life. If you could lose all but one thing would you keep the sand, pebbles, or golf balls?