Louisiana Stories

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 season with a batting average of .3995. This would qualify him for a rounded off …

Down in the Well   “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding…”   Proverbs 3:4   My neighbor Dudley Mercer tells a story from his Dry Creek childhood.  His family farm had a 35-foot deep well on which they relied for all of their water needs. Dudley’s family also had a problem: one …

The best time to plant a tree is twenty years ago. The next best time is today. It’s a story worth retelling. His name is  John Stephen Akhwari and he had the dubious honor to finish last in the Marathon at the 1968 Mexico City Olympics. John Stephen, a Tanzanian runner, finished more than one hour after the winner had …

Pray One for Another   “. . . And pray one for another.” (James 5:16) One of my favorite stories concerning prayer is told by my lifelong friend, Della Mercer. She faithfully taught the preschoolers at our church for years. Once at the end of a lesson on prayer, she wanted to finish the lesson by having the children pray. …

  John McCain   He is a hero and a patriot and fittingly, he is being buried as one. John McCain, regardless of your politics, was a great American. Whether you agreed with him or not, he would do anything for what he considered his country. I didn’t always agree with him. I laughingly always said, “Sometimes, he seems to …

Go Trojans!   I wouldn’t believe this story (or tell it) if I hadn’t heard it directly from Jimmie Hooks. Mr. Hooks was one of my Dad’s closest high school friends, a successful business in DeRidder (Big D Corral and Hook’s) and a fine Christian man.   I’ll let him tell the story as I remember it:   His son, …

“Son, there are two things you should never sell: a dog or a gun. You’ll regret it later.” -Louisiana Rural Wisdom Life is full of decisions, and each decision you make is a trade-off. You’ll gain some things while losing others. Seldom in life is any decision “a complete win.” To move ahead, you must necessarily leave something behind. The …

A word from Curt This afternoon my oldest grandson Noah and I will slip into the edge of Kisatchie National Forest near Woodworth. We won’t have our guns. Turkey season doesn’t open until tomorrow. We’ll be there (rain or not) to look and listen. I’m taking him to the area where I encountered a herd of wild horses last month. …

The best part of writing about Pineywoods Louisiana is how my books open the door for others to tell me their stories. Most of my historical fiction comes from actual stories told by my friends, both old and new. This is especially true with A Spent Bullet, my 1941 Louisiana Maneuvers book. My cousin, Harold Iles, who was a Sugartown …

Coming of Age: it always involves a good story       Cherry Winche Creek lies deep in the Ten Mile country of western Louisiana. Our new novel, As the Crow Flies, begins when the drifting Cotton family’s wagon breaks down at the creek. ___________________________________________________ Sometimes you write a book. And sometimes it writes itself. Often, you start out as …

Blog Post  #1300:  Our Most Popular Blogs Today marks the 1300th blog post I’ve published. According to views and shares, here are some of the most popular: Enjoy! *Scroll to the bottom of this post to order a copy of our newest novel, As the Crow Flies. __________________________________ Riding the Storm Out A word from Curt I’m writing today from Dry …

Scroll down to order your copy of As the Crow Flies. #1297 Blog Posts and Counting Stay Curious. Be Amazed. Tell Remarkable Stories. That’s how I’ve gotten to nearly thirteen hundred posts on the Creekbank Blog.  I’m always curious, easily amazed, and love hearing (and telling) remarkable stories. It’s really that simple. As we approach 1300 this week, we’ll take …

A word from Curt Respect.  What a fine word. Today is Mother’s Day.  This is my favorite story about a mother’s love. I share it with humility and respect.     This story is from my short story collection, Deep Roots.  A Thirty-Year-Old Picture As the older woman wrote her check, she laid down her billfold. Then I saw the …

Scroll down:  We need your help to publish As the Crow Flies. Scroll down to learn how you can support our Kickstarter campaign that begins Monday.   Are you receiving updates on our books, stories, and free giveaways? If not, subscribe here.  ________________________________________________________ One of the best parts of being part of the Creekbank Tribe is having fun being a …