Not mine, but I still love this illustration. I look at when it gets too serious or "busy".

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When things in your lives seem
almost too much to handle, when 24 hours in a day are not enough,
remember the mayonnaise jar and the 2 cups of coffee.

A
professor stood before his philosophy class and had some items in front
of him. When the class began, he wordlessly picked up a very large and
empty mayonnaise jar and proceeded to fill it 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. 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 unanimous "yes."

The
professor
then produced two cups of coffee from under the 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 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 and 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 the golf
balls. The same goes for life. If you spend all 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. Play with your children. Take time to
get medical checkups. Take your spouse out to dinner. Play another 18.
There will always be time to clean the house and fix the disposal. Take
care of the golf balls first--the things that really matter. Set your
priorities. The rest is just sand."

One
of the students raised her hand and inquired what the coffee
represented. The professor smiled. "I'm 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."