Jan to Dec (click here for 2021) ~ My YouTube channel is “Poiema K”

Thanks for visiting wp.krigline.com. In 2022, I didn’t do a good job of posting regular updates. Sorry if you visited and rarely saw any changes. I’ll end the year by posting many photos, and my “New Year’s Resolution” is to do a better job in 2023!

By the way, we love to connect with old friends! When IFM’s Friday program meets “in person” (during the school year) I’m usually there, but in the summer old friends may be able to chat with me during IFM’s weekly Friday night Zoom gathering (see sidebar graphic). Even if I’m not online, please visit! Everything is always free, and everyone is welcome. From 7:30-8pm, guests talk casually with American volunteers who enjoy meeting our international friends; after 8, there’s an English lesson. The meeting ID and passcode are always the same, or you can write to the address shown for more info.

Dec 2022

Start at the bottom, and end here in December.

It was a VERY full year, and these photos just look at a handful of highlights. But a rich life is made up of rich days, filled with a variety of experiences, and a diverse body of friends and relatives!

Our SC family gathered in early December, because our granddaughter Christy (barely visible in this photo!) asked to celebrate her birthday at the International House of Pancakes.

Vivian and I went to a local theater twice in December. First to see the first two “season three” episodes of “The Chosen” (now available on YouTube), and later to see this film: “I heard the Bells.” It tells the heartwarming story behind a beloved Christmas song.

In China, apples are a popular symbol of Christmas. I was grateful when my new Apple arrived!

We inherited the nativity and star from my parents — making them very special. This year, we added some light-up “trees” (mainly so I could use them at the CIF Christmas Party–see below).

Though bad colds, sinus trouble, and eventually Covid had us feeling “poorly” most of December, we still found ways to make Christmas special.

If you look back, you’ll see that we’ve been working on this room all year. The heat was restored in mid-December, just in time for a wonderful Christmas Party, which you can now see on YouTube.

Watch highlights at https://youtu.be/YnTOX40wTog

I’ll end our 2022 blog by passing on one of the most unique Christmas gifts I’ve ever received. At our extended family Christmas gathering, each participant customarily chooses and wraps a gift, not knowing which family member will get it (in a contest, drawing, etc). Sometimes the gift is chosen to bring laughter, sometimes it is something practical or delicious. Sometimes we open the gift and stare at it in bewilderment — until we read the attached explanation. Such was the case when a gift bag was opened, revealing the multi-part gift from Vivian’s niece Vickie. Here was her remarkable explanation.

Merry Christmas! This gift has many parts, to remind you of the real reason for the season.

1. A loaf of bread; for Jesus said “I Am the Bread of Life”: Jesus alone can sustain us, who are but starving beggars looking for food (John 6).
2. Electric candles; “I Am the Light of the World”: Jesus is the original and eternal source of light in the universe for us who are spiritually blind by birth (John 8).
3. A door; “I Am the Gate/Door of the Sheepfold”: Jesus is the only door to life for us who are lost outside God’s will (John 10).
4. Wooly slippers; “I Am the Good Shepherd”: Jesus knows and cares for us who are orphaned, wandering sheep without a shepherd (John 10).
5. Batteries (which give life to toys and machines); “I Am the Resurrection and the Life”: Jesus is the key to escaping spiritual death for us who are hopelessly doomed to death because of our sin (John 11).
6. A globe/map; “I Am the Way, Truth, and Life”: Jesus is the accessible path, the illuminating truth, and the giver of life for us who are lost, ignorant, and dead without Him (John 14).
7. Ivy vines; “I Am the True Vine”: Jesus is the source of eternal life for us who are dead and useless branches apart from him (John15).
8. Salt; Jesus is the “I Am.” He is everywhere, everything, and “every-when.” As the songwriter Oscar Bernadotte wrote more than a century ago, YOU are now to be the Salt of the Earth
~ Vickie Stewart Dec 25, 2022

Nov 2022

In November, I participated in CIU’s 100th anniversary Global Ministry conference.

At a Thanksgiving/ Christmas party for our refugee students, I got to share about common Christmas symbols.

Thanksgiving weekend, we rented a bigger car and took Beth and the kids to meet my Georgia relatives. (Beth had not seen many of these people for several years). The kids all enjoyed playing together (and the adults enjoyed good food and the World Cup).

Oct 2022

In the fall, Vivian and I spend every Friday near campus, feeding, teaching, and/or playing games with visiting students and scholars.

Here, Vivian is teaching an African student to play a game that is popular in China. (They really were having a great time!)

In October (every year), friends in the nearby town of St Matthews open their hearts and homes to give students a weekend full of fishing, boating, dancing, eating and more!

After being with friends (and sharing about our work) in Ohio, we spent a wonderful day at Ark Encounter in Kentucky. It is an amazing, full-size replica of the Biblical “ark”, filled with very interesting displays and dioramas.

The next day, we took a leisurely ride enjoying fall colors in the Smoky Mountains.

Around dusk, we managed a short visit to Gatlinburg TN, which my family often visited when I was a kid. I also worked there in the summer of 1981, while serving with “A Christian Ministry in the National Parks”.

During fall break, most student left campus — leaving international students alone. So, we invited several to our home to carve pumpkins! I can’t think of a way to have such a good time making a big mess!

All three of our grandkids also carved pumpkins for the first time, and had a great time with our friends from abroad.

Sept 2022

We enjoyed this trip through the Smoky Mountains in July, but would make the trip again in October.

Car problems carried over into September when we learned that front windshields are NOT as thick as they used to be (we had to replace the glass on both of our cars).

In the fall, Michael often gets to visit several local churches to invite volunteers to help IFM care for students and scholars.

In late September, these kind friends gathered to “read through” a drama I had been working on for a while. I think everyone had fun, and I felt the experience was very memorable.

Aug 2022

Here we celebrate several summer birthdays, plus our anniversary.

Michael’s students in Brazil surprised us with a cake-delivery on Michael’s birthday! They are involved in a wonderful ministry to children in Brazil, and I get to feel like I’m a tiny part of it!

“No school” means lots of time with Grandma during the summer. Fortunately, they enjoy art, puzzles and games.

Before school started again, we enjoyed a day together at SC’s wonderful State Museum.

Unfortunately, Beth’s car died during the summer. Used cars are rare and expensive these days, so we were glad to find this used Chrysler in August (so Michael could get his Kia back!).

June-July 2022

This montage tries to capture some of what keeps me so busy most of the year. I create weekly lessons, help organize a weekly dinner, and often make graphics to keep students informed. You can join the fun online every Friday (see the top of this page for info).

Our friend Terry’s book also came out in June.

Half of these photos were from July, while others came later. But we’re always grateful for the chance to visit with friends and partners.

Dave and Cindy spent a lifetime in Hong Kong, and we became friends and colleagues when we lived there. In early July we got to see their new home in Ohio.

In mid-July we flew to Texas for a conference. It was nice being in an airport again after so many months “on the ground.”

The conference grounds were very nice, but with the temperature over 100 daily, we didn’t go outside very often!

Here’s a nice photo near the campus coffee-bar, during the conference.

It is always a joy to get to share one of my songs. We met many colleagues at this conference, who serve in many ways and in many countries.

May 2022

You can see why I rarely found time to update my blog! Teaching refugees, working with international students, grandkids, yard/house-work, the Columbia International Festival, and a lot more that requires hours on a computer — it all keeps me active!

The Columbia International Festival was May 21-22 this year.

Vivian brought our grandchildren on Sunday. CJ was amazed, and said, “This is better than Universal!”

My phone’s “steps counter” hasn’t seen this many steps since the 2021 Festival!

When I wasn’t running around solving problems, I was probably with my colleagues here at the IFM booth.

I also wanted to include several more springtime photos with the kids (including a Chinese New Year visit from my lion puppet).

We ended May with a cookout and games during Memorial Day, at our home.

April 2022

The United Way connected IFM to Jushi, a local Chinese company, which supplied a few hard-working volunteers to help IFM/CIF. And I enjoyed the chance to speak some Chinese for a change!

We celebrated Beth’s birthday at a Japanese restaurant.

Getting a nice spring photo in front of dogwood blossoms.

CJ with our budding dogwood. The kids also sometimes help us with yard work.

One dogwood tree blossomed early, and was promptly killed by a late frost. The other dogwood survived.

The power company, and vines, had killed two trees in the back yard, and the frost killed a dogwood in the front. It cost thousands to get them removed. As time permits, I’ll be dealing with leftover roots for months to come!

Mar 2022

The most life-changing development was when Vivian broke her ankle. It’s amazing how a moment of distraction can so alter one’s life, but Vivian can’t drive for a while, which complicates our lives and the lives of our grandchildren. Still, we’re grateful that we basically need patience and time for this to heal–not surgery or worse. As if life isn’t complicated enough, sometime in late March this website went “offline.” I know little about the mechanical aspects of running a website, so (once I discovered the issue) it took days to fix the problems–and even now, the site/layout looks a little different. If you find a link or something that isn’t working properly, I’d love to hear about it.

On Mar 12, while we were visiting Georgia, Vivian tripped and fractured her ankle. She will be wearing a special “boot” for several weeks.

Happy St Patrick’s Day!

In order to replace IFM’s floor, Michael had to figure out what to do with all the stuff in the main room. Solution: on Mar 23 we had a storage POD delivered.

I’m including these photos to show how important volunteers are in our lives and work! They see needs, give of their time (and more), and bless many all year round with their generosity. THANKS!

The paint job turned out great. Replacing the floor and refinishing the stage are next. We also need heat and AC!

Feb 2022

Now that Mom lives in GA, we get to visit much more often!

In February, we took advantage of a sunny holiday to take the grandkids to Musgrove Mill state park in the upstate.

Jan 2022

We’ll start with some photos and captions from January….

Even after Christmas decorations are put away, our snowmen remain watchful for rare SC snowfall.

Early in January we finally unpacked some of our artwork and started to fill our walls.

Left: We decorated the “spare room” with some of the lighthouses my Dad had collected. Right: A Chinese teacher painted “Jesus looking for a lost lamb” for me in the 1980s. It’s now in my new office (near my COVID-mask collection).

We call the front room our “Life Room”; there’s no TV, so it’s supposed to be a pleasant place to “make our own music,” read, or spend time in prayer. Much of this art was also created by or given by friends.

In the fall, students from Chi Alpha helped IFM vacate our main meeting room. In January, a company started repairing and painting the ceiling and walls.

As work progresses, we hope to be able to use this room again in the spring.

Perhaps our biggest change in January is that Michael started teaching English to refugees from Afghanistan. Here, Vivian joins us for a game night.

My students do not even know the English alphabet, so teaching them is a challenge. It’s very different from the students I had in China for so long.

On Jan 21, we got our first sight of snow in SC for two years.

In the morning, Vivian and our granddaughter enjoyed playing in the snow and taking photos.

After months of barren trees and a brown yard full of acorns, the white blanket was a welcome (though temporary) change.

(click here for 2021) 

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