At the center of the enchanting rolling meadows, dwelt a shepherd boy. His being was unadulterated, simple yet virtuous. His only responsibility was essentially to care for his herd of ewes.
Their low murmuring and the murmuring of the wind among the single tree on the mountaintop were his only co-dwellers. Day in day, watching over his charges imbued in him a notion of tranquil contentment.
However, there were the occasional moments of solitude, when the shepherd boy would pine for fellowship. During one such occasion out of sheer boredom, the shepherd boy devised a mischievous plot.
Stories of wild beasts preying on sheep had been heard times and again in the town. So, the boy decided to leveraged this fear and played a trick on the townsfolk.
One afternoon he dashed into the village screaming “Wolf! A wolf is preying on my sheep!” The terrified villagers ran up the hills to offer assistance but discovered no beast.
The boy chuckled at the puzzle on their faces. This prank continued for a few days more. Yet, one morning, a real wolf actually come to prey the herd. The shepherd boy dashed for help, screaming “Wolf, Wolf!” But this time, no one responded.
Frustrated and alone, the boy struggled against the wolf but managed to protect only few of his sheep. Heartbroken, he returned to get more info the town only to be met with a scolding on honesty and the consequences of false alarms.
The tale of this shepherd boy has been passed down 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 difficult to earn back. It's a story as appropriate today as it was in the past.