Devotions

John Wooden’s Socks   “It isn’t what you do, but how you do it.”   -John Wooden   I was a college senior the year I met John Wooden in 1979. I was preparing to embark on my journey as a high school basketball coach. I ...

Choosing Your Rut     Choose your rut carefully: you’ll be in it for the next thirty miles. -Sign on Alaskan wilderness road It’s true. I learned in African bush driving that the rut you chose is very difficult to get out of. During the ...

Do you have “Salty Language?” (a 3-minute story) Let your speech always be gracious, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how you ought to answer each person. Colossians 4:6 ESV Salt has many uses: it seasons, preserves, melts ice, heals, and serves other ...

A Few Thoughts on Charisma   “Charisma is the ability to do the hard work of fitting in with those around you.” –Seth Godin   Charisma is a word that is often misunderstood. I recently ran across Seth Godin’s excellent definition of what it is. ...

King Mockingbird   Author’s note: this story is from my first book, Stories from the Creekbank. It concerns a mockingbird and a place I love called Dry Creek Baptist Camp.   This week is Girls Camp at Dry Creek. The photo below shows four of ...

December 29  Sharp Hooks   Reas Weeks was a Dry Creek legend who lived and died before my time. He was a bachelor who lived in a remote area along Bundick Creek. He never owned a vehicle or held a regular job. He supported himself ...

  December 28 The 100-Foot Line     There’s a fine stand of young slash pine at Dead Man’s curve on the Longville Road. I’ve watched the growth of this forest since it was clear cut, then replanted in straight rows. The following year, the ...

How to Fight a Bear I’ve got hiking fever. It’s strikes me several times a year and I find my heart, if not my feet, on a trail in Arkansas or the Appalachian Mountains. In both of these hiking locales, encountering black bears does occur. ...

A Good Time to “De-clutter”   As many of you know from my stories I love to hike in the Ozark Mountains of Arkansas and along the Appalachian Trail (or the “A.T.” as it is called.) One thing backpacking quickly teaches you is the priority ...

A word from Curt The following story, about King George VI and his famous Christmas message and poem to the British people during the darkest days of the War. Scroll down to read this remarkable story   January 1 Lagniappe A New Year  This is ...

December 31 New Year’s Eve   Finishing Strong   Ted Williams is generally considered the greatest hitter in the history of major league baseball. Two events from his career speak about the concept of “finishing strong.” In 1941, Williams entered the last day of the ...

        A Word from Curt   Grateful. Gratitude is one of my 6+ words for 2016. I’m thankful for the wonderful gifts in my life. Today I’m thankful to have the calling of writing. It’s what I do. Who I am.  I’m ...

This is chapter 16 from my short story book, Christmas Jelly An Old Feed Trough   When Mary birthed Jesus ’twas in a cow’s stall, With wise men and farmers and shepherds and all. – “I Wonder as I Wander”   The old barn looks ...

  Each day during December, we’re featuring a chapter from our Christmas short story collection, Christmas Jelly.   If you enjoy today’s story, share it with your friends.    New Birth in New Orleans Christmas 2005 It’s Christmas in New Orleans, but we’re not here to ...