KindnessFable & folk tale
Androcles and the Lion
A runaway slave hiding in a desert cave meets a lion with a wounded paw. Years later, in a roaring arena in Rome, they meet again.
MotivationBiography
Never Too Late
Anna Mary Moses spent her life on farms, raising a family and doing endless chores. In her late seventies she picked up a paintbrush. The world came to know her as Grandma Moses.
For KidsClassic retold
The Elves and the Shoemaker
A poor shoemaker has leather left for just one more pair of shoes. He cuts it out, goes to bed, and in the morning, something wonderful is waiting on his workbench.
ReflectionFable & folk tale
The Golden Touch
A god offers King Midas any wish he likes, and the king already loves gold more than anything. By the next morning, everything he touches shines.
For KidsFable & folk tale
The Goose That Laid the Golden Eggs
A poor farmer and his wife find a golden egg in their goose's nest. Then another. Then another. One golden egg a day should be plenty, shouldn't it?
Life LessonsClassic retold
The Lottery Ticket
After supper one evening, a comfortable husband and wife discover that their lottery ticket might have won a fortune. Before they even check the number, things begin to change. Chekhov's sharp, funny story.
For KidsFable & folk tale
The Town Mouse and the Country Mouse
A plain little country mouse visits her grand cousin in the big town, where the food is fancy and the plates are silver. But there is something the town mouse forgot to mention.
For KidsFable & folk tale
The Lion and the Mouse
A mighty lion laughs when a tiny mouse promises to repay his kindness one day. Then the hunters' net falls.
Life LessonsClassic retold
How Much Land Does a Man Need?
A peasant is offered all the land he can walk around in a single day, for one small price. Tolstoy's famous parable about wanting more.
Life LessonsClassic retold
The Bet
At a party, a rich banker bets a young lawyer two million roubles that he cannot survive fifteen years alone in a room. Chekhov's story of what the lawyer learns.
ReflectionHistorical narrative
The Philosopher Who Asked a King to Move
The most powerful man in the world offered a poor philosopher anything he wanted. His answer has been remembered for more than two thousand years.
Life LessonsClassic retold
The Necklace
Mathilde borrows a diamond necklace for one glittering night at a ball. When it disappears, she and her husband pay for it with ten years of their lives.
KindnessOriginal story
The Umbrella at Platform Four
One rainy morning, an old man left a spare umbrella at a station with a handwritten note. He had no idea what it would start.
ReflectionReflection
The Things We Notice Only When We Slow Down
A reflection on hurry, attention and the quiet details of an ordinary day, and on what we might be missing while we rush towards the next thing.