In the heart of the enchanting rolling meadows, resided a boy named Shepherd. His life was mostly untarnished, and unsophisticated. His primary duty was mainly to look after his flock of sheep.
Their low murmuring and the murmuring of the wind among the solo tree on the peak check here were his only co-dwellers. Day upon day, looking out for his charges inculcated in him a notion of calm satisfaction.
But, there were the occasional moments of solitude, when the shepherd boy would pine for fellowship. During one such occasion out of sheer monotony, the shepherd boy orchestrated a mischievous plan.
Tales of wolves prowling on sheep had been around for a while in the hamlet. So, the boy chose to exploit this fear and played a trick on the villagers.
One day he dashed into the village shouting “Wolf! A wolf is attacking my sheep!” The scared villagers sprinted up the hills to help but discovered nothing threatening.
The boy giggled at the confusion on their faces. This trick laughed for a few more days. But, one day, a real wolf did attack the grazing sheep. The shepherd boy dashed for help, shouting “Wolf, Wolf!” But this time, no one responded.
Frustrated and alone, the boy fought against the wolf but could rescue only few of his flock. Heartbroken, he went back to the town only to be met with a scolding on honesty and the consequences of dishonesty.
His tale of this shepherd boy has been transmitted 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 broken, is hard to reclaim. It's a story as appropriate today as it was anciently.