At the center of the captivating rolling hills, lived a young shepherd. His life was unadulterated, and unsophisticated. His primary duty was essentially to tend to his flock of rams.
Their soft bleating and the rustling of the breezes through the single tree on the peak were his constant associates. Day in day, guarding his wards instilled in him a sense of tranquil contentment.
But, there were at times moments of isolation, when the shepherd boy would long for company. On one such day from sheer tedium, the shepherd boy conceived a naughty plan.
Tales of wild beasts hunting on sheep had long been circulating in the hamlet. So, the boy decided to leveraged this fear and played a prank on the inhabitants.
One afternoon he ran into the village yelling “Wolf! There is a wolf attacking my sheep!” The frightened villagers rushed up the hills for rescue but saw no beast.
The boy laughed at the dilemma on their faces. This prank continued for a couple of more days. But, one morning, a real wolf did attack the grazing sheep. The shepherd boy dashed for aid screaming “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. Heartbroken, read more he went back to the village only to be met with a reprimand on honesty and the consequences of dishonesty.
The story of this shepherd boy has been handed down generations as a mediaeval parable to teaching the value of honesty, the implications of dishonesty and the perils of crying wolf. Moreover, it stresses how trust once broken, is hard to regain. It's a story as appropriate today as it was anciently.