updated on Friday, December 27, 2024 Our favorite store, Foreman’s Grocery in Dry Creek, is open again! Stop in for some of the best boudin in Louisiana and pick up a signed copy of Where I Come From. Where I Come From: Tales from the Pineywoods 66 new stories. 291 pages Paperback Price: $20.00 Hardcover $30.00 Kindle eBook …
Read More »Louisiana Stories
Relationships: Our Hands and Hearts
Everything rises and falls on relationships. -John Maxwell It’s all about relationships. It’s all about connecting. Dr. Erik Bailey once told me, “My Aunt Dru always said, “Baby, even if our hands don’t touch, our hearts always do.” That’s relationships. They can be in proximity. Or they can be separated by miles. But never separated in hearts. Everything …
Read More »The German POW Graves at Alexandria (LA) National Cemetery
Order copies of Where I Come From at Amazon Download your companion e-book, “Medic!“ on Amazon. CHAPTER 50 EXCERPT From the Curt Iles book, Where I Come From. The German POW Graves Author’s note: I have photographs of the five POW graves. I’ll post later. I scoffed when I first heard it: Five German POWs buried in the Alexandria National …
Read More »Our latest Creekbank Newsletter
“I worship when I write, and I write when I worship.” This wonderful quote shares what I’ve come to realize: that writing and creating are ways of worshipping God. He is the source of my life, joy, and any writing skills I’ve been given. I want to be a good steward of those gifts in 2025 and beyond. Merry …
Read More »The Quiet Leader: Guard your heart
Remnants of the terrible 2023 Westport, Louisiana fire. Avoiding a Personal Forest Fire: “Keep your heart with all vigilance, for from it flow the springs of life.” -Proverbs 4:23 One of life’s saddest occurrences is watching a good, successful leader lose their way. It’s like driving past a terrible car wreck. You want to avert your eyes …
Read More »All Things Catfish: The Dry Creek Catfish Lunch
The Catfish Lunch Chapter 32, “The Catfish Lunch,” from Curt Iles’s latest book, Where I Come From. Learn more here. If you’re going to understand the culture of Dry Creek Baptist Camp, you’ll need to know about the monthly Catfish Lunch. If you’ve read any of my thirteen books, you know I grew up in a unique place: Dry Creek …
Read More »Two Brothers: Reconciliation
CHAPTER 17 FROM WHERE I COME FROM: Excerpt from “A Falling-Out.” Sadly, the turmoil of the recent election has caused me to see families and friendships break apart. This story from our new book, Where I Come From, may help you take that first step to reconciliation. It’s one of my favorite stories. I’m prone to list all of …
Read More »Chapter 62: “A Broken Cup” from ‘Where I Come From’
Scroll to the next post for Creekbank Book Information, or click here. Author’s note: I originally cut “A Broken Cup” from the book. I wasn’t sure I was ready to be this transparent. When we needed one more chapter to match the book’s spine width with the page count. I felt this was God’s direction to include it …
Read More »Table of Contents: ‘Where I Come From’
Order your copy today! Available on Amazon in paperback, hardcover, and Kindle ebook. Read the 66-chapter Table of Contents: Prologue: Patterans 1.Big-Hearted People 2.The Seed Tree 3.The Old House 4.The Eighth of January 5.Prof. Cavanaugh’s Best Lecture 6.Loving Hands 7.John Wooden’s Socks 8.“Curt Lies” 9.Hugh Thompson on Integrity 10.The Night The Old House Came Alive 11.The Hundred Foot …
Read More »The Talking Stick: Chapter 33 from ‘Where I Come From.”
Now available at https://bit.ly/KindleEbookWhereIcomeFrom The Talking Stick I have his walking stick— the one he carried in the latter years of his life when I knew him best. His name was Frank Iles, but our family knew him as “Pa.” He was my great-grandfather and a major link to our family’s past. Pa’s ancestors were among the first pioneers …
Read More »God Owns It All: The Cattle on a Thousand Hills.
Psalm 50:20: The cattle on a thousand hills 10 For every beast of the forest is mine, and the cattle upon a thousand hills. 11 I know all the fowls of the mountains: and the wild beasts of the field are mine. God owns it all: every head of cattle; every dollar bill. We are simply stewards. He owns it …
Read More »‘Where I Come From’ Landing Page: Leave this world better than you found it.
This is the landing page for our upcoming short story collection, Where I Come From. We’ll be updating information on the book here. “Leave this world better” from Where I Come From. Front Cover Image This is the image for the front cover of: Where I Come From: Stories from the Pineywoods CURT ILES ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Where I Come …
Read More »Thoughts on Being a Life-Long Learner
LLL The Discipline of being a LLL: a “Life-Long Learner.” Proverbs 19 for August 19 “To acquire wisdom is to love yourself; people who cherish understanding will prosper.” Proverbs 19:8 NLT Life-Long Learner Anyone can be one. No age required. No experience necessary. Available regardless of race, gender, educational background, or family heritage. Go for it! …
Read More »My Favorite Jimmie Barrett Story
My Favorite Jimmie Barrett Story Excerpt from my upcoming short story collection, Where I Come From. I close with my favorite Jimmie Barrett principal story. One day, I was teaching chemistry when he slipped into the back of the classroom to observe me. He got comfortable. He always looked kind of sleepy and was soon leaning on his elbow. …
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