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How a mayonnaise jar and a bottle of beer represent life.
A professor stood before his philosophy class. On the table in front of him he had placed several diverse items. The students were puzzled at the seeming incongruity of the objects. When the class began, he silently picked up a very large and empty mayonnaise jar and proceeded to fill it with golf balls. He then asked 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 a bit so that the pebbles could roll into the open area between the golf balls. Once again he asked his students if the jar was full and they agreed that it was.
The professor next picked up a box of sand and poured it in to the jar. He asked once more if the jar was full and got a unanimous "Yes" from his class.
But he was not quite done. He reached under the table and produced a bottle of beer and poured the entire contents into the jar thereby effectively filling the empty spaces between the sand.
"Now", said the professor as the students' laughter subsided, "I want you to recognize that this jar represents your life. The golf balls are the important things--God, your family, your children, your health, your friends and your favorite 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, 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 golf balls. 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 to you. Pay attention to the things that are critical to your happiness".
After this, one of the most observant students raised her hand and inquired what the beer represented.
The professor smiled and remarked, "I'm glad you asked. It just goes to show that no matter how full your life may seem, there's always room for a beer with a friend".
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Here we are another year older, with new ideas and new beginnings.
A lot of you may remember that I did an article in February 2005 on how the Barco newsletter had gotten it's start, and how far we had come since our first addition came out in October 1999.
Every year since then, we have tried several different avenues, attempting to make the Barco newsletter both a useful, as well as an enjoyable mailing to read.
I'm asking for your help. If you have any suggestions or comments (good or bad....) that would help me to make the 2006 newsletter more interesting and enjoyable to read, please do not hesitate to let me know.
Your input would be greatly appreciated, and again I would like to thank everyone for taking the time to read the Barco Insider all these years.
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