In the heart of the mesmerizing rolling hills, lived a young shepherd. His existence was unadulterated, simple, and honest. His main role was essentially to look after his herd of sheep.
Their low murmuring and the rustling of the breezes among the single tree on the mountaintop were his constant associates. Day after day, watching over his charges instilled in him a sense of calm satisfaction.
Yet, there were the occasional moments of loneliness, when the shepherd boy would long for companionship. During one such occasion because of sheer boredom, the shepherd boy devised a mischievous plot.
Tales of wild beasts preying on sheep had been around for a while in the village. So, the boy opted to exploit this fear and played a joke on the inhabitants.
One afternoon he ran into the village yelling “Wolf! A wolf is preying on my sheep!” The terrified villagers ran up the hills to help but found no beast.
The boy chuckled at the dilemma on their faces. This prank continued for a couple of more days. However, one day, a real wolf actually attack the herd. The shepherd boy dashed for help, shouting “Wolf, Wolf!” But this time, no one showed up.
Frustrated and alone, the boy struggled against the wolf but could rescue only few of his sheep. Devastated, he returned to the town only to be met with a scolding on honesty and the results of false check here alarms.
The tale of this shepherd boy has been handed down generations as a mediaeval parable to teaching the importance of honesty, the implications of dishonesty and the dangers of crying wolf. Moreover, it stresses how trust once lost, is hard to regain. It's a story as appropriate today as it was then.