A pot-bellied toad was croaking in his swamp when he saw a firefly shining on
top of the reeds. He thought that no being had a right
to have qualities that he would never possess. Mortified by his own
helplessness, he jumped up and covered the firefly with his cold belly.
The innocent firefly dared ask: Why do you cover me? And the frog,
overcome by envy,
could only say: Why do you shine?
-- José Ingenieros (El Hombre Mediocre) |