Like many of you, we receive emails forwarded from computer to computer, state to state, country to country. Some are funny; some are beautiful photos with equally beautiful music; some are advise. Rarely do we know who penned them. Sometimes I imagine an unidentified face, sitting at the computer much like myself, taking the time to write the words, or create the powerpoint.
To be honest, most of these emails I delete, only some do I forward to friends. And rarely do I find one truly thought provoking. Here is one that came across my inbox yesterday that I feel has a thought provoking message that we could all use to help us simplify our lives.
Stress
A lecturer when explaining stress management to an audience, raised a glass of water and asked,
‘How heavy is this glass of water?’
Answers called out ranged from 20g to 500g.
The lecturer replied, ‘The absolute weight doesn’t matter.
It depends on how long you try to hold it.
If I hold it f or 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.’
He continued,
‘And that’s the way it is with stress management.
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.’
‘So, before you return home tonight, put the burden of work down.
Don’t carry it home.
You can pick it up tomorrow.
Whatever burdens you’re carrying now,
Let them down for a moment if you can.’
So, my friend, put down anything that may be a burden to you right now.
Don’t pick it up again until after you’ve rested a while.
