Once upon a time, there was a shepherd who raised a flock of sheep. Every day, he carefully counted his herd and tended to them with great care. One crisp morning, the shepherd discovered a large hole in the fence of his sheep pen—just one sheep was missing. Clearly, a wolf had slipped through the gap during the night and carried off a sheep. When the neighbors saw what had happened, they rushed over to advise him: “Quickly patch up that hole in the fence—otherwise the wolves will keep coming back to steal your sheep!” But the shepherd waved their concerns aside with a dismissive gesture. “What’s the point of fixing the fence now? The sheep are already gone,” he said. He ignored their warnings and left the hole unattended. To his surprise, the very next night, the wolf once again squeezed through the same hole and made off with another sheep. This time, the shepherd was filled with regret—and finally realized how wrong he’d been. Without delay, he gathered wood and tools, working through the night to seal the hole in the fence completely. He even reinforced the entire enclosure, making the fence far more sturdy and secure. From that day forward, no wolf ever managed to slip into the sheep pen again, and the shepherd’s flock never suffered another loss.