The Wolf in Sheep's Clothing

In the rolling hills where green pastures stretched as far as the eye could see, there lived a large flock of sheep who spent their days peacefully grazing under the watchful eye of their shepherd. The sheep were content and safe, protected by the shepherd’s vigilance and the strong fence that surrounded their pasture.

Not far from this peaceful scene, a cunning wolf prowled the nearby forest, his yellow eyes constantly watching the flock with hunger and frustration. Day after day, he would circle the pasture, looking for any weakness in the fence or any moment when the shepherd might be distracted.

But the shepherd was experienced and careful. He knew the dangers that wolves posed to his flock, and he never left his sheep unguarded. The fence was high and strong, and he carried a sturdy staff that he knew how to use. The wolf found no opportunity to reach the sheep through force or stealth.

“There must be a way,” the wolf muttered to himself as he paced back and forth at the edge of the forest. “Those sheep look so fat and delicious, and here I am, growing thinner every day because I can’t figure out how to catch them.”

The wolf had tried everything he could think of. He had attempted to dig under the fence, but the shepherd had buried stones deep in the ground to prevent exactly that. He had tried to leap over the fence, but it was too high even for his powerful legs. He had tried to wait for the sheep to wander close to the edge, but they seemed to sense his presence and stayed well away from the fence line.

One day, as the wolf was wandering through the forest in frustration, he came across something that gave him a brilliant idea. There, caught on a thorn bush, was the complete fleece of a sheep—wool that had been shed naturally and blown by the wind until it became tangled in the thorns.

The wolf’s eyes gleamed with cunning as he carefully removed the fleece from the bush. It was large enough to cover most of his body, and if he wore it correctly, he might be able to disguise himself completely.

“This is perfect!” he thought excitedly. “If I can’t get to the sheep as a wolf, I’ll simply become a sheep myself! I’ll put on this fleece, walk right into the pasture, and the shepherd will never suspect a thing. I’ll be able to pick off the sheep one by one from the inside!”

The wolf spent the rest of the day practicing his deception. He draped the wool over his back and sides, making sure to cover his distinctive wolf markings. He practiced walking like a sheep, with shorter, more hesitant steps instead of his usual predatory prowl. He even practiced making sheep-like sounds, though his attempts at “baa-ing” sounded rather suspicious to his own ears.

When evening came and the shepherd began to gather the flock for the night, the wolf put his plan into action. Covered in the sheep’s fleece and doing his best to imitate the movements of the other sheep, he quietly joined the flock as they made their way toward the pasture gate.

The shepherd, tired from a long day of watching the flock, did a quick count of his sheep as they filed past him. The wolf kept his head down and stayed in the middle of the group, hoping to blend in completely.

“One, two, three…” the shepherd counted, and when he reached his expected number, he nodded with satisfaction and closed the gate behind the last “sheep.”

The wolf could hardly contain his excitement. His plan had worked perfectly! He was now inside the pasture with access to all the sheep he could eat. He just needed to wait for the right moment when the shepherd was asleep or distracted.

As night fell, the sheep settled down to rest in their familiar spots around the pasture. The wolf, still wearing his sheep’s clothing, lay down among them, his mind racing with plans for his feast.

But the wolf had made one crucial mistake in his planning. He had been so focused on getting into the pasture that he hadn’t thought about what would happen next.

Late that night, the shepherd woke up feeling hungry. He had been invited to a feast the next day and wanted to bring something special to contribute to the meal. He decided that a nice, tender lamb would be perfect for the occasion.

Taking his lantern, the shepherd quietly made his way into the pasture where his flock was sleeping. He looked around carefully, trying to decide which sheep would be the best choice for tomorrow’s feast.

His eyes fell on a sheep that was lying slightly apart from the others—the wolf in disguise. In the dim light of the lantern, the shepherd couldn’t see clearly, but this particular “sheep” looked plump and well-fed.

“Perfect,” the shepherd whispered to himself. “This one will do nicely.”

Before the wolf realized what was happening, the shepherd had approached silently and, with one swift motion, struck him with his staff. The wolf, caught completely off guard and unable to defend himself properly while tangled in the sheep’s fleece, was knocked unconscious instantly.

It wasn’t until the next morning, when the shepherd was preparing the meat for the feast, that he discovered the truth. As he began to remove the fleece, he was shocked to find not a sheep, but a large wolf underneath.

“Well, well,” said the shepherd, shaking his head in amazement. “So this is how you thought you’d outsmart me, you clever wolf. You wanted to be a sheep so badly that you’ve gotten exactly what sheep get—caught by the shepherd!”

The shepherd called his neighbors to come and see the strange discovery. Word of the wolf’s failed deception spread quickly throughout the countryside, and the story became a popular tale told around dinner tables and evening fires.

“He thought he could fool everyone by changing his appearance,” the shepherd would tell visitors, “but he forgot that when you pretend to be something you’re not, you also have to accept the consequences that come with that role.”

The other wolves in the forest heard the story and took it as a warning. They realized that deception might seem like an easy path to getting what you want, but it often leads to consequences far worse than the original problem.

The sheep, meanwhile, continued to graze peacefully in their pasture, safer than ever now that one of their greatest threats had been eliminated by his own cunning.

Moral: Those who pretend to be something they’re not will eventually face the consequences of their deception. When you take on a false identity to gain an advantage, you also take on all the risks that come with that identity. Evil intentions disguised by a false appearance will ultimately be revealed.