At the center of the enchanting rolling fields, dwelt a young shepherd. His being was pure, simple, and honest. His main role was essentially to look after his flock of ewes.
Their soft bleating and the murmuring of the gales among the lone tree on the hilltop were his constant companions. Day after day, guarding his responsibilities inculcated in him a notion of tranquil contentment.
However, there were occasional moments of solitude, when the shepherd boy would long for companionship. During one such occasion out of sheer monotony, the shepherd boy conceived a mischievous plot.
Stories of wild beasts hunting on sheep had long been circulating in the town. So, the boy decided to exploit this fear and played a joke on the townsfolk.
One afternoon he raced into the village screaming “Wolf! A wolf is that has taken my sheep!” The scared villagers rushed up the hills for rescue but found no wolf.
The boy giggled at the puzzle on their faces. This trick continued for a couple of more days. But, one noon, a real wolf did come to prey the herd. The shepherd boy dashed for aid 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. Devastated, he returned to the town only to be met with a scolding on honesty and the results here of false alarms.
His tale of this shepherd boy has been transmitted generations as a mediaeval parable for teaching the significance of honesty, the consequences of lying and the risks of crying wolf. Moreover, it emphasizes how trust once lost, is hard to reclaim. It's a story as appropriate today as it was then.