This post is not new, and I don't know the author, but I think it is terrific and wanted to share it with everyone:
A
young lady confidently walked around the room with a raised glass of water
while leading a seminar and explaining stress management to her audience.
Everyone
knew she was going to ask the ultimate question, 'Half empty or half full?' She
fooled them all.
"How
heavy is this glass of water?" she inquired with a smile. Answers called
out ranged from 8 oz. to 20 oz.
She
replied, "The absolute weight doesn't matter. It depends on how long I
hold it.
-
If I hold it for a minute, that's not a problem.
- If I hold it for an hour, I'll have an ache in my right arm.
- If I hold it for a day, you'll have to call an ambulance.
In
each case it's the same weight, but the longer I hold it, the heavier it
becomes."
She
continued, "and that's the way it is with stress. If we carry our burdens
all the time, sooner or later, as the burden becomes increasingly heavy, we
won't be able to carry on."
"As
with the glass of water, you have to put it down for a while and rest before
holding it again. When we're refreshed, we can carry on with the burden -
holding stress longer and better each time practiced.
So,
as early in the evening as you can, put all your burdens down. Don't carry them
through the evening and into the night. Pick them up again tomorrow if you
must.