John Maxwell tells the story of a man who put marbles in a jar.1Photo credit: “Glass Marbles Cracked Fried Macro January 10, 20112,” by Steven Depolo on Flickr. Used under a Creative Commons license. Each marble represented a remaining Saturday in his life, assuming he lived an average lifespan. The story ends with the man removing his last marble saying, “I figure if I make it until next Saturday, then I have been given a little extra time.”
Sounds nice, huh? Puts the shortness of life in perspective and encourages one to value each day.
Thanks, but no thanks.
I’m not going to live life as a countdown to death. Every day is a gift, not just those Saturdays that occur after some actuarial lifespan. Besides, you get only one marble — now.
If you need marbles in a jar to give meaning to your life, try this: each evening contemplate the day. If you believe you spent it well, put a marble in the jar. Or better yet, if upon rising you are thankful for another day, put a marble in the jar. The filling jar represents the blessings you continue to receive.
As brother Bob would say, “Every day above ground is a good day.”
- 1Photo credit: “Glass Marbles Cracked Fried Macro January 10, 20112,” by Steven Depolo on Flickr. Used under a Creative Commons license.
Comments
4 responses to “Counting Your Days”
I loved this post. You’re right, it’s not about all the marbles left in the jar, it’s about how many you have left for your slingshot! :)
Also, I read a book recently, “Man’s search for meaning.” If you’ve not read it, I think you should check it out. It’s a great read.
Nick, thanks for the book recommendation. I’ll have to check it out.
A single marble is enough for me — one day at a time. :-)
Hi Brent
I found your post because I was actually looking for the marble post that counted down… thinking it would be a nice “eye opener” to think about life.
However I have to say: thank’s god I read your post. I couldn’t agree more!
Thank you for sharing.
Thanks, Freddy! Enjoy your marble. :-)