Music has always been a big part of my life. The Yeagley boys had one musical requirement — pound our way through several red John Thompson piano books under my mother’s direction. Then, and only then, could we choose an instrument to play. I chose accordion. But it was not uncommon to hear a trumpet, violin, cello, baritone, bassoon, or guitar playing in our…
Author: Bryan Yeagley
A New Zip Code
Three zip codes . . . just three. 99691 – Nikolai, AK – Population 94: Most of the residents are indigenous Alaskans. Winters are tough with temperatures dipping to 60 below zero in this tiny Interior Alaskan village. 99648 – Perryville, AK – Population 113: Like Nikolai, the handful of folk in Perryville are primarily indigenous Alaskans. Located on the…
What WHAT CHEER Taught Me
WHAT CHEER. I sped past the sign and thought, “That must be a really neat place.” I was traveling across rural Iowa. Mile of corn, soybeans and picturesque farms passed by. The winding country roads forced me to slow down and enjoy the bucolic landscape. I kept thinking about What Cheer as I worked in nearby Oskaloosa and Washington. So on my…
Loving Your Neighbors From Arkansas
I spent a few days in Gillette, Wyoming last week. Hadn’t really planned it that way, but sometimes life takes detours. Getting there is not easy. Three flights over eleven hours landed me in a different world. I made a few snap judgments about Gillette when I found stuffed buffalo and elk in the small airport terminal. But as I waited for…
Our Forever Friend
Forever friends. We all have one. Perhaps a few. This coming fall my wife and I will meet four other couples along the Oregon coast. We worked, worshipped and began our families together in a distant city. We have not all been together in nearly 24 years. Here and there in Dallas, Dayton, Atlanta, Branson and Los Angeles our individual…
The Power of God’s Still, Small Voice
Our God is big. And He carries a big brush to paint boldly on His Universal canvas. Mt. Rainier in the state of Washington is one of His ostentatious masterpieces. Stately. Grand. Oft-hidden but glorious when revealed. To see it glow in sunset light is awe inspiring. A myriad of whites, purples, pinks, blues and grays is not easily forgotten.…
Who Do You Imitate?
As a child, my heroes wore black and gold. With names like Bobby Orr and Phil Esposito, my Boston Bruins spurred me on to greatness on the ice. Kind of . . . There were a few problems that deterred my career with the Bruins. First of all, Bobby Orr never wore figure skates like me. I do remember an…
Emmaline’s Doorpost
I loved visiting my grandparents. Some things never changed in their homes. My mom’s parents lived near Washington, D.C. with its museums and historical sites. Funny, though, I really got charged up by the endless supply of sweet cereal and cartoons on a TV that, unlike ours, worked all the time! Who could forget Grandpa Brackett’s repeated efforts to teach…