Androcles lives a miserable life as the slave of a cruel and unjust master. Even though runaway slaves face the death penalty, he flees to the nearby woods. There Androcles delights in his new-found freedom. He also makes an unusual friend: a lion with an injured paw. The two live together happily, but the lion gets captured, and shortly afterwards Androcles, too. Androcles is punished by being fed to a lion.

The proud emperor loves to parade before his people with beautiful clothes. When a court official suggests paying the soldiers more money so they don’t have to beg for food, the furious emperor is ready to throw him in jail.

When three hungry soldiers enter the village, the selfish villagers hide rather than welcome them. To teach the villagers that sharing brings joy, they announce they are making soup from stones. This idea is so surprising that the soldiers convince the self-centered villagers to add something to their soup for additional flavor. Their contributions to the water and stones become a delicious pot of soup.

Even though Randy is much loved at home, he has a serious problem—everything he has is old! His rich neighbor Mike, who often teases him, has a new bike, new toys, and never does chores. Randy, however, rides an old bike, has old toys, and has to do all kinds of work around the house. Though Randy is often reminded that “things don’t bring happiness,” he desperately wishes he could be rich so he could buy everything new.