In the heart of the captivating rolling hills, lived a boy named Shepherd. His existence was unadulterated, and unsophisticated. His main role was essentially to tend to his website herd of sheep.
Their gentle baas and the whispering of the gales across the single tree on the peak were his main associates. Day upon day, looking out for his wards inculcated in him a feeling of calm satisfaction.
But, there were occasional moments of solitude, when the shepherd boy would long for company. On one such day because of sheer boredom, the shepherd boy conceived a mischievous plot.
Stories of wolves prowling on sheep had been around for a while in the town. So, the boy decided to leveraged this fear and played a joke on the townsfolk.
One afternoon he raced into the village yelling “Wolf! A wolf is preying on my sheep!” The terrified villagers rushed up the hills to help but saw nothing threatening.
The boy laughed at the puzzle on their faces. This game continued for a couple of more days. Yet, one morning, a real wolf did come to prey the herd. The shepherd boy raced for aid shouting “Wolf, Wolf!” But this time, no one showed up.
Frustrated and alone, the boy battled against the wolf but managed to rescue only few of his flock. Heartbroken, he went back to the village only to receive a scolding on honesty and the results of false alarms.
His tale of this shepherd boy has been handed down generations as a mediaeval parable for teaching the importance of honesty, the implications of dishonesty and the perils of false alarms. Moreover, it stresses how trust once broken, is tough to regain. It's a story as relevant today as it was in the past.