Jenny Fisher Savage

Birding, theology reading, Carolina born and bred, mother of two dear gals, grandmother of three delightful boys and one on the way.

[Jenny Fisher Savage @Hillsideviews]

'Quickly, quickly, lest time be lost for lack of love.'
the others cried behind them. 'Let our zeal
for doing good make grace grow green again'
Purgatorio XVIII:103-105

[Sama Hoole @SamaHoole]

The cheapest, most effective wildfire crew in California has four legs and eats the problem.

Clearing flammable brush off a steep slope by hand is brutal, slow, expensive work. A herd of goats is none of those things.

Hand clearance:

- Around 28,000 dollars an acre
- People with tools on dangerous slopes
- Cuttings that then have to be hauled away

A herd of goats:

- Roughly 500 to 1,000 dollars an acre
- Climbs slopes no crew wants to touch
- Eats the brush to a firebreak and fertilises the ground on the way through
- Reaches branches several feet up
- Visibly thrilled to be at work

Calling the goat a quaint throwback has it backwards. On this job the goat is the superior technology by a factor of about fifty, and it runs on the very scrub everyone else is paying to remove.

[Jenny Fisher Savage @Hillsideviews]

@KSPrior @regentcollege I took this class online with you when you taught and it's definitely heaven :)

[Jenny Fisher Savage @Hillsideviews]

@revhannahking So thankful you are all safe. Thank the Lord!

[Jenny Fisher Savage @Hillsideviews]

I will never get over and always very grateful to the professor, or really any professional or expert, who picks up the phone or answers in depth the email when I have questions. Especially when they gently reframe my question and in doing so teach me how to ask better questions.

[Bob Elder @southernphd]

I never met Gordon Wood, but I have a story about him.

In one of my grad school seminars, we read Wood’s Creation of the American Republic. The sheer erudition and evidentiary depth of the book bowled me over.

Back then, before kids and before life accelerated to warp speed, I used to call my mother every Sunday to catch up. Lots of times, we ended up talking about what I was reading that week in my grad seminars or for leisure. Mom had an omnivorous mind, and she was always looking for something else to read. She was a true intellectual—curious about almost everything, always eager to integrate new arguments or ideas into her existing schemas of how the world worked or to have those schemas challenged and changed.

When we talked that particular Sunday, I think I tried to describe to her part of Wood’s argument about the relationship between the state constitutions during the Articles of Confederation era and the federal Constitution. Maybe I was tired, maybe I didn’t completely understand her questions, but the end result of the conversation was that Mom had questions about Wood’s argument that I didn’t answer satisfactorily. I told her that she should probably just read the book, and we said goodbye.

She did eventually read the book, but the next Sunday, Mom started our conversation by saying, “Well, I had a lovely conversation with Gordon Wood this week.” For a split second, I thought she was joking, but then I remembered who I was dealing with. I started to sweat. “How?” I asked. A whole variety of unlikely scenarios in which the foremost historian of the American Revolution and my mother, who lived in Wichita, Kansas, might have met ran through my mind. “Oh, I just looked up his office phone number on Brown’s website and called, and he picked up!” Mom said. I decided I would have to find another profession.

As it ended up, Gordon Wood spent about an hour on the phone with my mother answering her questions about the Constitution. Ever since, I’ve had a soft spot for the man when I imagine him picking up the phone in Providence and finding Becky Elder from Wichita on the other end of the line. His generosity in that moment spoke very well of him.

Rest in peace, professor.

[Bob Elder @southernphd]

I never met Gordon Wood, but I have a story about him.

In one of my grad school seminars, we read Wood’s Creation of the American Republic. The sheer erudition and evidentiary depth of the book bowled me over.

Back then, before kids and before life accelerated to warp speed, I used to call my mother every Sunday to catch up. Lots of times, we ended up talking about what I was reading that week in my grad seminars or for leisure. Mom had an omnivorous mind, and she was always looking for something else to read. She was a true intellectual—curious about almost everything, always eager to integrate new arguments or ideas into her existing schemas of how the world worked or to have those schemas challenged and changed.

When we talked that particular Sunday, I think I tried to describe to her part of Wood’s argument about the relationship between the state constitutions during the Articles of Confederation era and the federal Constitution. Maybe I was tired, maybe I didn’t completely understand her questions, but the end result of the conversation was that Mom had questions about Wood’s argument that I didn’t answer satisfactorily. I told her that she should probably just read the book, and we said goodbye.

She did eventually read the book, but the next Sunday, Mom started our conversation by saying, “Well, I had a lovely conversation with Gordon Wood this week.” For a split second, I thought she was joking, but then I remembered who I was dealing with. I started to sweat. “How?” I asked. A whole variety of unlikely scenarios in which the foremost historian of the American Revolution and my mother, who lived in Wichita, Kansas, might have met ran through my mind. “Oh, I just looked up his office phone number on Brown’s website and called, and he picked up!” Mom said. I decided I would have to find another profession.

As it ended up, Gordon Wood spent about an hour on the phone with my mother answering her questions about the Constitution. Ever since, I’ve had a soft spot for the man when I imagine him picking up the phone in Providence and finding Becky Elder from Wichita on the other end of the line. His generosity in that moment spoke very well of him.

Rest in peace, professor.

[Jenny Fisher Savage @Hillsideviews]

Note to self

[Michael Reeves @mike_reeves]

Rejoice always, pray without ceasing (1 Thes. 5:16-17).
First rejoice in God, then the prayer will flow.

[Sarah-Jane (SJ) Murray @SJ_Murray]

Wow. It’s simply not true that people around the world don’t care about the rich ideas in old books. We launched Dante Minutes on YouTube in Oct 2024. Now, 21 Million views later, ep. 1 of Homer’s Odyssey has passed 600k views. Share the free course: https://t.co/1AsswAo8VT

[Sarah-Jane (SJ) Murray @SJ_Murray]

In book 21, Penelope issues a final challenge to the suitors: string Odysseus's legendary bow. With this test, the fate of the kingdom hangs in the balance.
https://t.co/1AsswAo8VT
#defythegods #TheOdyssey

[Jenny Fisher Savage @Hillsideviews]

@booksoftitans I would say a qualified "yes." You won't have the background for Ransom, but it could work for your purposes. I would suggest that at some point you go back and read all three books together, along with Abolition of Man, to get the full atmosphere of what he is portraying.

[Beatrice Groves @beatricegroves1]

I don't think I've ever seen three kingfishers in one frame before - a symphony of blue💙💙💙
Congrats to @BGallagherColl for an amazing capture!

[Jenny Fisher Savage @Hillsideviews]

@FredFredSanders Thanks for pointing this out. Can't spend time today with it, but bookmarked it.

[Jenny Fisher Savage @Hillsideviews]

@scism_cameron @matthew_loftus Or in the way of your dopamine hits

[Christopher Hale @ChristopherHale]

“If you think the world is selfish and rotten, go to the cemetery at Colleville-sur-Mer overlooking Omaha Beach. See what one group of men did for another on D-Day, June 6th, 1944.” — Andy Rooney

[Dr Helen Fry | WWII Historian @DrHelenFry]

In this photograph, a single poppy stands in a field in Calvados, Normandy, bathed in the soft light of the evening sun.

They were, and remain, the Greatest Generation.

We will remember them.

[Jenny Fisher Savage @Hillsideviews]

@WendyAlsup One of these things is not. Like the others😂

[Jane @JaneFranklin99]

Normandy veterans Henry Rice and Ken Hay - both 100 - on Sword Beach once more. @ForcesNews #D-Day

[Dr Helen Fry | WWII Historian @DrHelenFry]

Did you know that the first women to land on the Normandy beachhead in June 1944 were nurses of Queen Alexandra’s Imperial Nursing Service?

Their task was to establish a field hospital for 600 wounded soldiers.

They succeeded.

Please remember these heroines who saved lives:

[noor୨୧ @wottheberry]

i took a 45-minute uber ride home from the airport last night after a brutal, three-day business trip.

i was completely emotionally and physically drained, and my social battery was at absolute zero.

when i got into the car, the driver.. an older guy named kabir.. didn't say the usual "how was your flight?" or turn on the radio.

instead, he just handed me a small, laminated piece of paper attached to the back of his headrest.
it was a literal "ride menu."
it said:
1. *the silent ride* (total quiet, no pressure to talk).
2. *the therapist ride* (if you need to vent about your day, i am listening).
3. *the tourist ride* (i will tell you cool facts about the city).
4. *the radio ride* (we just listen to old jazz and coast).

i smiled, pointed to number 1, and whispered, "silent ride, please. thank you."

he gave me a warm nod in the rearview mirror, adjusted the AC, and drove the entire 45 minutes in absolute, beautiful silence.

it was the most peaceful, therapeutic boundary i’ve experienced all year. i felt my entire nervous system finally reset.

when he dropped me off, i gave him a massive tip and told him, "that menu is a genius business idea. you must get amazing reviews."

He looked back at me and said, "i didn't make the menu to get better tips, dear.

my daughter has severe social anxiety, and she told me that the hardest part of her day is navigating small talk with strangers when her brain is tired.

she told me it feels like running a marathon.

i made the card so that anyone who gets into my car can feel completely safe dropping the mask for a little while."

i walked into my apartment and just sat on my suitcase.

we live in a world that is constantly screaming at us to perform, to network, to be "on," and to over-communicate.

but sometimes, the deepest form of love and respect you can show another human being is just creating a small, safe pocket of silence for them to rest in.

pay attention to the people who give you permission to be quiet. they are rare.

[Jenny Fisher Savage @Hillsideviews]

@KSPrior

[Matt Smethurst @MattSmethurst]

“Fear is a reaction. Courage is a decision.”

— Winston Churchill

D-Day was 82 years ago today.