At the center of the enchanting rolling meadows, lived a young shepherd. His existence was essentially untarnished, and unsophisticated. His main role was mainly to tend to his flock of sheep.
Their soft bleating and the rustling of the breezes among the single tree on the peak were his constant associates. Day in day, looking out for his wards imbued in him a feeling of calm satisfaction.
But, there were the occasional moments of loneliness, when the shepherd boy would yearn for fellowship. In one such instance out of sheer tedium, the shepherd boy devised a naughty scheme.
Narratives of wolves preying on sheep had long been circulating in the hamlet. So, the boy decided to used this fear and played a prank on the inhabitants.
One afternoon he dashed into the village yelling “Wolf! There is a wolf preying on my sheep!” The frightened villagers ran up the hills to help but discovered nothing threatening.
The boy giggled at the confusion on their faces. This trick persisted for a few days more. Yet, one noon, a real wolf did attack the flock. The shepherd boy raced for aid shouting “Wolf, Wolf!” But this time, no one responded.
Frustrated and alone, the boy battled against the wolf but could rescue only few of his sheep. Heartbroken, he returned to the village only to be met with a scolding on honesty and the results of false alarms.
His tale of this shepherd boy has been transmitted generations as a mediaeval parable for teaching the value of honesty, the consequences of lying and the perils of crying wolf. Moreover, it stresses how trust once violated, is hard to earn back. It's a story as relevant today get more info as it was then.