Hero

He was minding his own business, tending to the cattle and making them cross the shallow creek. He needed to be quick before the sunset in the west and darkness fell over the village.  

The headcount was short of one. Where had the lone lamb strayed he wondered? He looked around and found the lamb stuck in the mud. The kind of mud that swallows any and everything. Leaving the rest of the flock on the opposite bank of the creek, the little boy rushed back to save his lamb.

Sticking a thin bamboo pole in the ground, he swung on it to test if it would bear his weight. The pole bent far enough for him to grab the upper legs of the lamb. Summoning his strength, he pulled with great force and got the lamb out, bleating in distress.

From that day onwards the shepherd boy became the hero of the lamb, never leaving his side, and refusing to stay in the cattle shed. He slept on the boy's bed, keeping him warm in the winter months.

Such is what heroes are made of!