In the heart of the captivating rolling fields, resided a boy named Shepherd. His existence was mostly unadulterated, simple yet virtuous. His only responsibility was mainly to care for his flock of ewes.
Their soft bleating and the rustling of the breezes across the lone tree on the mountaintop were his constant co-dwellers. Day in day, guarding his wards inculcated in him a feeling of calm satisfaction.
However, there were occasional moments of solitude, when the shepherd boy would pine for fellowship. On one such day out of sheer monotony, the shepherd boy devised a mischievous scheme.
Narratives of predators prowling on sheep had long been circulating in the village. So, the boy chose to leveraged this fear and played a prank on the townsfolk.
One day he dashed into the village shouting “Wolf! There is a wolf that has taken my sheep!” The frightened villagers rushed up the hills for rescue but discovered nothing threatening.
The boy giggled at the dilemma on their faces. This prank laughed for a few days more. Yet, one morning, a real wolf actually come to prey the flock. The shepherd boy ran for help, screaming “Wolf, Wolf!” But this time, no one responded.
Frustrated and alone, the boy fought against the wolf but could protect only few of his sheep. Heartbroken, he went back to the village only to receive a scolding on honesty and the consequences of crying wolf.
His tale of this shepherd boy has been handed down generations as a click here mediaeval parable to teaching the value of honesty, the consequences of lying and the dangers of false alarms. Moreover, it stresses how trust once lost, is hard to regain. It's a story as appropriate today as it was anciently.