The Highest Priority

I once heard an illustration given—you’ve probably heard it too—about a professor (or some such person. It doesn’t matter who, really.) who wanted to teach his students a life lesson. On the table, he had a few jars. The first jar had three big rocks in it. He asked the students if the jar was full. They agreed that it was. The second jar had some smaller pebbles in it. Again, he asked the students if the jar was full. Again, they agreed that it was. The third jar was filled with sand. A third time, the professor asked if the jar was full. And, a third time, the students agreed that it was.