June 1st: Rabbit! Rabbit!

Rabbit! Rabbit! is said on the first of the month for luck. Am I superstitious? No, I just like fun and silly traditions.

Bill and I are wrapping up a long holiday weekend at the cottage by doing housework. It never seems as big a chore here, perhaps because we are less driven to finish it all right away. Stopping to see if a fish took bait, to listen to the birds, or to watch a dragonfly are not only a fun break, they're encouraged.

Bill spotted our next door neighbors struggling to get a heavy set of steps into the water and attached to their seawall. Good neighbors, but stubborn in that they never think to ask for help. They never say no to others, but never think to ask for themselves. At the same time that Bill saw this and headed outside, so did the neighbor on their other side and the one behind us. Three men, two women supervising (I do that exceptionally well) and a happy dog anxious to use the steps made lighter work of a heavy job.

This picture is captioned "That's what friends are for". Maybe I should show it to my neighbors. 

I came inside to check laundry progress and check email. The following was in one of the emails. Many of you have probably read this before. It is always appropriate and if I sometimes forget my way, the slower pace at the cottage is a good reminder.

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 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 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--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, 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 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 filler."

One of the students raised his 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."