Mayonaise Jar and 2 cups of Coffee

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

A professor stood before his philosophy class and had some items in front of him.

When the class began, wordlessly, he 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 an 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 our life.

The golf balls are the important things - God,family, children, health, friends, and favorite passions -- 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 job, house, and 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.

So... 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 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."

(this was shared by "thelma Galvez-Curiano" a while back. it is a simple reminder of how life should be treated. there were other versions of this but i like this one the most.)

A Prayer

Thought you might enjoy this interesting prayer given in Kansas at the opening session of their Senate. It seems prayer still upsets some people. When Minister Joe Wright was asked to open the new session of the Kansas Senate, everyone was expecting the usual generalities, but this is what they heard:

Heavenly Father, we come before you today to ask your forgiveness and to seek your direction and guidance. We know Your Word says, 'Woe to those who call evil good,' but that is exactly what we have done.

We have lost our spiritual equilibrium and reversed our values.

We have exploited the poor and called it the lottery.

We have rewarded laziness and called it welfare.

We have killed our unborn and called it choice.

We have shot abortionists and called it justifiable.

We have neglected to discipline our children and called it building self esteem.

We have abused power and called it politics.

We have coveted our neighbor's possessions and called it ambition.

We have polluted the air with profanity and pornography and called it freedom of expression.

We have ridiculed the time-honored values of our forefathers and called it enlightenment.

Search us, Oh, God, and know our hearts today; cleanse us from every sin and set us free.

Amen!

(passed on by Weng S. through email)

This is basically true but a bit modified. The following is the prayer as read by Pastor Wright in January of 1996 on that Opening of Kansas Senate.

Heavenly Father we come before you to ask your forgiveness. We seek your direction and your guidance. We know your words says " Woe to those who call evil good." But that's what we've done.

We've lost our spiritual equilibrium. We have inverted our values. We have ridiculed the absolute truth of your word in the name of moral pluralism. We have worshiped other gods and called it multiculturalism.

We have endorsed perversion and called it alternative lifestyle.

We've exploited the poor and called it a lottery. We've neglected the needy and called it self preservation. We have rewarded laziness and called it welfare. In the name of choice, we have killed our unborn. In the name of right to life, we have killed abortionist.

We have neglected to discipline our children and called it building self esteem. We have abuse power and called it political savvy. We have coveted our neighbor's possession and called it taxes. We have polluted the air with profanity and pornography and called it freedom of expression. We have ridiculed the time-honored values of our forefathers and called it enlightenment.

Search us, oh, God, and know our hearts today. Try us. Show any wickedness within us. Cleanse us from every sin and set us free. Guide and bless this men and women who have been sent here by the people of the State of Kansas, and that they have been ordained by you to govern this great state.

Grant them your wisdom to rule. May their decisions direct us to the center of you will. and, as we continue our prayer, and as we come in out of the fog, give us clear minds to accomplish our goals as we begin this legislature. For we pray is Jesus' name, Amen.

Reverend Wright is not the original. It was a version of one written by Bob Rusell in 1995.

(from snopes.com)

4th Of July

In the United States, Independence Day, commonly known as the Fourth of July, is a federal holiday commemorating the adoption of the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776, declaring independence from the Kingdom of Great Britain. Congress approved the wording of the Declaration on July 4 and then sent it to the printer. Whether John Hancock, as the elected President of the Second Continental Congress, or anyone else signed the document that day is unknown, because that document has been lost — presumably destroyed in the printing process. Hancock's name and that of a witness do appear on the typeset broadside that was published within a few days. On August 2 in the following month, an engrossed document in script form was signed by Hancock and other delegates.

Independence Day is commonly associated with fireworks, parades, barbecues, carnivals, picnics, baseball games, and various other public and private events celebrating the history, government, and traditions of the United States, but is often also viewed as simply a summer festival, apart from its patriotic overtones.

In the Philippines the 4th of July is celebrated as the Filipino-American Friendship Day. It was designated by President Diosdado Macapagal to commemorate the liberation of the country by joint Filipino and American forces from the Japanese occupation at the end of World War II.

The Philippines was a U.S. territory from 1898 to 1942, when it was occupied by Japanese forces, and again for a brief period after the war. The country gained complete independence on July 4, 1946.

Initially, the nation's Independence Day holiday (Araw ng Kalayaan) was held on July 4. Former President Diosdado Macapagal moved it to June 12, the date on which the Philippines declared independence from Spain in 1898. Filipino-American Friendship Day was created in its place, and coincides with the United States' July 4 Independence Day.

Another reading: The Independence Day That Wasn't.

HAPPY EATING and FIREWORKS TO EVERYONE WHO WILL CELEBRATE THIS JULY 4th

Condolence

Our age is starting to show when the people that took care of us when we were in high school begins to disappear one at a time. The month of June witnessed another loved one saying goodbye and so is the beginning of July. No one lives forever, but it is hard to let go of a loved one.

To Manning and Gil your batch mates joins you in your grief and convey our deepest sympathies. You are all in our prayers and may GOD guide you in this hour of need.

The following were copies of emails sent by batch mates who received the news.
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Tuesday, July 1, 2008, 3:40 PM

Abdon wrote:

To All Batch mates,

Manning's father passed away. Viewing tomorrow (July 2, 2008) at Humphey's mortuary I think this is in Chula Vista.

Abdon Pugal
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Saturday, June 28, 2008, 7:35 AM

Francis wrote:

For every body's information,

Gil Pizzaro's father died this morning. The remain lies at Dalluay funeral parlor.

Francis Rivero