At the center of the enchanting rolling meadows, resided a boy named Shepherd. His being was mostly pure, simple, and honest. His primary duty was essentially to look after his herd of rams.
Their soft bleating and the murmuring of the breezes among the single tree on the peak were his constant co-dwellers. Day after day, watching over his wards instilled in him a sense of calm satisfaction.
But, there were at times moments of read more loneliness, when the shepherd boy would pine for companionship. In one such instance out of sheer monotony, the shepherd boy devised a naughty plan.
Narratives of wild beasts preying on sheep had been heard times and again in the town. So, the boy decided to used this fear and played a joke on the townsfolk.
One morning he dashed into the village screaming “Wolf! There is a wolf attacking my sheep!” The scared villagers sprinted up the hills to help but discovered no beast.
The boy chuckled at the puzzle on their faces. This game persisted for a couple of more days. However, one morning, a real wolf did charge at the grazing sheep. The shepherd boy raced for help, shouting “Wolf, Wolf!” But this time, no one came.
Frustrated and alone, the boy struggled against the wolf but managed to rescue only few of his sheep. Heartbroken, he returned to the town only to be met with a lesson on honesty and the repercussions of dishonesty.
His tale of this shepherd boy has been handed down generations as a mediaeval parable to teaching the significance of honesty, the implications of dishonesty and the dangers of crying wolf. Moreover, it emphasizes how trust once violated, is tough to reclaim. It's a story as pertinent today as it was anciently.