The Flea and the Ox

A flea thus questioned an ox:

"What ails you, that being so huge and strong, you submit to the wrongs you receive from men and slave for them day by day? While I, being such a small creature, mercilessly feed on their flesh and drink their blood without restraint?"

The ox replied, "I do not wish to be ungrateful, for I am loved and well cared for by men. They often pat my head and shoulders."

"Woe is me!" said the flea. "This very patting, which you enjoy, brings with it my inevitable destruction whenever it happens to me."