At the center of the enchanting rolling hills, resided a boy named Shepherd. His life was untarnished, simple, and honest. His only responsibility was mainly to look after his herd of rams.
Their soft bleating and the murmuring of the wind through the lone tree on the hilltop were his main co-dwellers. Day in day, looking out for his responsibilities instilled in him a notion of calm satisfaction.
However, there were the occasional moments of solitude, when the shepherd boy would long for company. more info In one such instance out of sheer tedium, the shepherd boy orchestrated a mischievous plan.
Tales of predators hunting on sheep had been around for a while in the village. So, the boy chose to exploit this fear and played a joke on the villagers.
One afternoon he ran into the village shouting “Wolf! A wolf is preying on my sheep!” The frightened villagers sprinted up the hills for rescue but found nothing threatening.
The boy chuckled at the confusion on their faces. This trick laughed for a few days more. Yet, one morning, a real wolf did come to prey the herd. The shepherd boy raced for help, shouting “Wolf, Wolf!” But this time, no one responded.
Frustrated and alone, the boy struggled against the wolf but could protect only few of his sheep. Devastated, he returned to the town only to receive a lesson on honesty and the repercussions of false alarms.
The story of this shepherd boy has been transmitted generations as a mediaeval parable for teaching the significance of honesty, the implications of dishonesty and the dangers of false alarms. Moreover, it highlights how trust once broken, is difficult to reclaim. It's a story as relevant today as it was in the past.