A tale of Two Seas

Sitting in the Geography class in school,

I remember how fascinated

I was when we were being taught

all about the Dead Sea.

As you probably recall,

the Dead Sea is really a Lake, not a sea

(and as my Geography teacher pointed out,

if you understood that,

it would guarantee 4 marks in the term paper!)

Its so high in salt content

that the human body can float easily.

You can almost lie down and read a book!

The salt in the Dead Sea is as high as 35%

- almost 10 times the normal ocean water.

And all that saltiness has meant

that there is no life at all in the Dead Sea.

No fish. No vegetation. No sea animals.

Nothing lives in the Dead sea.

And hence the name: Dead Sea.

While the Dead Sea has remained

Etched in my memory,

I don't seem to recall learning

about the Sea of Galilee

in my school Geography lesson.

So when I heard about the Sea of Galilee

and the Dead Sea and the tale of the two seas

- I was intrigued.

Turns out that the Sea of Galilee

is just north of the Dead Sea.

Both the Sea of Galilee

and the Dead Sea receive their water

from river Jordan.

And yet, they are very, very different.

Unlike the Dead Sea,

the Sea of Galilee is pretty,

resplendent with rich, colourful marine life.

There are lots of plants.

And lots of fish too.

In fact, the sea of Galilee is home

to over twenty different types of fishes.

Same region, same source of water,

and yet while one sea is full of life,

the other is dead. How come?

Here apparently is why.

The River Jordan flows into the Sea of Galilee

and then flows out.

The water simply passes through the Sea of Galilee

in and then out - and that keeps the Sea

healthy and vibrant, teeming with marine life.

But the Dead Sea is so far below

the mean sea level,

that it has no outlet.

The water flows in from the river Jordan,

but does not flow out.

There are no outlet streams.

It is estimated that over a million tons of water

evaporate from the Dead Sea every day.

Leaving it salty.

Too full of minerals.

And unfit for any marine life.

The Dead Sea takes water

from the River Jordan,and holds it.

It does not give.

Result?

No life at all.

Think about it.

Life is not just about getting.

Its about giving.

We all need to be a bit like the Sea of Galilee.

We are fortunate to get wealth,

knowledge, love and respect.

But if we don't learn to give,

we could all end up like the Dead Sea.

The love and the respect,

the wealth and the knowledge

could all evaporate.

Like the water in the Dead Sea .

If we get the Dead Sea mentality

of merely taking in more water,

more money, more everything

the results can be disastrous.

Good idea to make sure

that in the sea of your own life,

you have outlets.

Many outlets.

For love and wealth

- and everything else that you get in your life.

Make sure you don't just get,

you give too.

Open the taps.

And you'll open the floodgates to happiness.

Make that a habit. To share. To give.

And experience life. Experience the magic!

# this entry was quoted from an email forwarded by my best friend Nashriq =)