Louisiana Stories

Where I Come From: Tales from the Pineywoods   Where I Come From: Tales from the Pineywoods Curt Iles   Current Timeline Monday, October 21   Kindle ebook pre-orders begin at Amazon.com Tuesday, October 31, Amazon and Kindle editions go live.   (Amazon Print and Kindle ebook). November 2024:  Copies of Where I Come From, and Christmas Jelly will be well placed …

  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 …

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 …

  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!     …

  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. …

            ”The Old House at Night”  1963  tempera on cardboard by my uncle, Bill Iles. The Old House in Dry Creek. First constructed by my great-great grandparents circa 1892, this family home is my favorite spot in the world, the source of many of my stories, and my best writing muse. Below is the opening …

  On Leadership   As I begin my 68th year on Planet Earth, I can sum up what I’ve learned about leadership in one sentence: “I want to thank you ahead of time for doing this, and I know you won’t disappoint me.” I’ve been a youth leader, parent, coach, teacher, principal, camp manager, missionary, and now a grandfather. That …

Audio Podcast of “Professor Cavanaugh’s Best Lecture. ”   A word from Curt Teacher. There’s no higher calling. Few professions can influence as much as a dedicated teacher. The best teacher I ever met was Charles Cavanaugh. This is his story. “Yes, God’s will—most often—is simply doing the best we can, right where we are.” Professor Charles J. Cavanaugh and …

“Six Foot Deep” in Trouble     A word from Curt: Emotion The best stories elicit emotion. Sometimes tears. Other times laughter. Even anger or sadness. A good story creates emotion. Today’s blog is a funny story from an unlikely location,  Dry Creek Cemetery. Enjoy. Laugh. Retell.   “Six Foot Deep” in Trouble   One of my ministries is helping …

A word from Curt Leaning Trees “When I observe a young person, I experience two strong emotions. First, I feel great affection for the young person they are. Then secondly, I feel a deep respect for the adult they will one day become.” -Louis Pasteur   On the morning before Hurricane Rita arrived, I made one last survey of my …

    Scroll down to learn of ways you can be part of The Creek Family. My favorite passage from A Good Place. I read the following story to a senior adult group earlier in the week. One lady laughed so hard that I thought we were going to have to perform the Heimlich Maneuver on her. Here is it …

    Thoughts on Stewardship   Saturday, June 1 It’s the first day of a new month. June 1. It’s the first day of hurricane season. June 1. It’s my birthday. Number 68. 68. That’s a lot of hurricane seasons in Louisiana.   June 1. It could be considered the half mark of the year. It’s a good time to …

A Note from Curt: As long as I’m alive, the story of Sgt. Leroy Johnson will be remembered.     It’s a story worth telling, worth passing on.  We need to be reminded that freedom is never free. It’s important to remember stories of heroes who paid with their lives for our American freedom. There is no better example of …

  This is a reader favorite from my third book, Wind in the Pines. You can order Wind in the Pines on Amazon. VIEW   Join Curt as he shares at the Creekbank YouTube Channel:   @curtiles56 LISTEN  Listen to the Creekbank  Audio Podcast or at  Spotify: Curt Iles/Creekbank Stories As always, enjoy. Curt Watch out for the Fish It’s trendy …