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 Sharks Don’t Sink – Neither Must We!

By Shlomo Maital     

      Consider sharks.  They have been around on this earth for 400 million years – far older than dinosaurs, older than even trees.  And evolution has made them superbly adapted to their environment, to survive and thrive.   Sharks have survived five mass extinctions —  and are currently struggling with their sixth, as humans kill sharks with fishing nets and overfishing, depriving them of food.

        We can learn a lot from them – despite Steven Spielberg’s 1975 film Jaws, which inspired enormous fear of sharks. 

        First, consider fish.  They have swim bladders — gas-filled organs that provide them with buoyancy without having to expend energy by swimming.  Fish can sleep, thanks to swim bladders – watch your goldfish do it sometime.  Darwin wrote that lungs of some fish evolved from these swim bladders.

         Sharks, in contrast, have no swim bladders.  If they stop swimming, they sink – because they have negative buoyancy.  So, sharks cannot, may not, stop swimming.  Ever.  Sharks don’t sink – because they are continually moving forward.  They even sleep while swimming – though never with closed eyes.

          What does this have to do with people?

          Sometimes, people sink.  They sink into despondency and depression.  And they don’t have mental ‘swim bladders’ to keep them afloat.  

          We can perhaps avoid this – by learning from sharks.  Keep moving forward. 

           Keep learning new things.  Keep making new friends. Keep trying to bring value, create value, by helping friends and families and strangers.  Keep being curious.  Keep trying new skills.  New foods. New music.  Stagnate – and you sink.  All too common among us seniors.

            Sharks don’t sink.  Neither must we.   Human beings have been around for 50,000 years.  Sharks survived – and mostly thrived — around 80 times longer!     Maybe they know something we can use?!

          I recommend  Jasmin Graham’s new book Sharks Don’t Sink: Adventures of a Rogue Shark Scientist, just out – subject of an On Point podcast episode.