Fixing the Sheep Pen Too Late

Long ago, in a country in Europe, there was a young king.
He loved only one thing — dancing and having parties in his castle every day.

“Play the violin! Bang the drums! Everyone sing and dance!”
The king laughed and said, “Ruling the country is too hard. Parties are much more fun!”
Every night the castle was full of lights and music.

But outside, bridges were broken and no one fixed them.

The food barns were almost empty and no one cared.

Children whispered, “Our king only plays all day…”

One day, a minister walked outside the town.
He saw a sheep pen with a big hole.
“Baa! Baa!” cried the little sheep.
The shepherd was busy playing his flute and did not notice.

The minister thought, “Oh no! If the hole is not fixed, the wolf will come!
If the king does not rule the country, enemies will come!
But our king only plays. What can we do?”

He rushed back to the castle, pulled on his cloak, and went into the big hall.

He said to the king:
“Your Majesty, the country is broken everywhere. If you don’t fix it, enemies will come.
It is just like the sheep pen with a hole. If you don’t fix it, the wolf will take the sheep!
You only dance and don’t care for the people. Soon the enemies will come inside!”

But the king only laughed and waved his hand:
“Nonsense! Look, the country is peaceful!
Where is the wolf? Where are the enemies?
Come, come, let’s keep dancing!”

That night, deep in the forest, a low sound came:
“Awooooo—”
The big gray wolf came!
It sneaked through the hole in the sheep pen and grabbed a little sheep.
“Baa! Help!” cried the sheep.
The flock ran everywhere. The shepherd stamped his feet in fear.

Suddenly—“Bang! Bang!” The castle gates were broken.
The barns were robbed. People ran in every direction.
The enemy army came while the king was still dancing.

The king, filled with regret, cried out:
"Oh no! I should have listened to my minister!
I should have fixed the sheep pen!
I should have protected the country earlier!”

But the little sheep was already gone.
The enemies were already inside.
The king’s regret was too late.
This story teaches us:
When something is broken, fix it right away.
If we wait until later, it may be too late!