A Cup of Coffee

As I was deleting forwards I came across this one with a personal message to me from a friend from a past church. I had not heard it before and liked it. I promise it won't end with "send this to 10 people". :)

SOURCE UNKNOWN:
A group of alumni, all highly established in their respective
careers, got together for a visit with their old university professor.
The conversation soon turned to complaints about the endless stress of
work and life in general.

Offering his guests coffee, the professor went into the kitchen and
soon returned with a large pot of coffee and an eclectic assortment of
cups: porcelain, plastic, glass, crystal - some plain, some expensive,
some quite exquisite. Quietly he told them to help themselves to some
fresh coffee.

When each of his former students had a cup of coffee in hand, the
old professor quietly cleared his throat and began to patiently address
the small gathering. ''You may have noticed that all of the nicer looking
cups were taken up first, leaving behind the plainer and cheaper ones.
While it is only natural for you to want only the best for yourselves,
that is actually the source of much of your stress-related problems!"

He continued, "Be assured that the cup itself adds no quality to the
coffee. In fact, the cup merely disguises or dresses up what we drink.
What each of you really wanted was coffee, not a cup, but you
instinctively went for the best cups. Then you began eyeing each other's
cups.

"Now consider this: Life is coffee. Jobs, money, and position in
society are merely cups. They are just tools to shape and contain life,
and the type of cup we have does not truly define nor change the quality
of the life we live. Often, by concentrating only on the cup, we fail to
enjoy the coffee that God has provided us. God brews the coffee, but he
does not supply the cups. Enjoy your coffee!"

The happiest people don't have the best of everything - they just
make the best of everything they have. So, please remember: Live simply,
love generously, care deeply, speak kindly, and leave the rest to God.
And, the richest person is not the one who has the most, but the one who
needs the least.