As the new school year begins for us here in New York I can't help but reflect on this episode from The Twilight Zone called The Changing of the Guard (1962). As a former teacher I remember what it was like to influence those younger than me and the importance of the connections formed between student and teacher. The things taught in a classroom can stay with a student for the rest of their lives. I know I'll never forget when my sophomore religion teacher commented on my writing assignment that he thought I was an amazing writer and that I should keep up with it. I still have that paper somewhere in my memory bins.

This is the 102nd episode on The Twilight Zone, airing on June 1, 1962. The episode follows a elderly English professor named Ellis Fowler who gets told that he must retire because he has taught already for 51 years. Professor Fowler is a committed teacher whose main focus in life has been his position as a teacher and the teaching the young men of the Rock Spring School for Boys.

After hearing this news of a forced retirement he begins to question whether or not he has made a difference as a teacher. Fowler decides to make preparations in order to take his life on Christmas Eve next to a statue of the famous educator Horace Mann, with its quote "Be ashamed to die until you have won some victory for humanity." Before he goes through with it he is called back to his classroom where he is visited by the spirits of his former students.

Fowler is taken by surprise not just by seeing them but having a few of them share how his teachings heavily influenced their lives for the better. He is moved to tears by their stories and before he knows it they all disappear. With his renewed faith in his skills as a teacher he accepts his retirement knowing that he has lived a full life because he knows he enriched the lives of his students.

Just like most parents, most teachers want to know that what they did as teachers meant something good to one of their students. I think that is something we could remember heading into the new academic year. That we should appreciate good teachers and let them know what they mean to us whenever we can because it can make a difference in their lives. 

Rod Serling ends the episode by saying, "Professor Ellis Fowler, teacher, who discovered rather belatedly something of his own value. A very small scholastic lesson, from the campus of the Twilight Zone."

I think vintage magazines hold a huge source of information not only that was useful then but could be useful even in today's modern climate. Young Miss Magazine is an American teen magazine that began in 1932 and stayed in publication for 72 years. I actually read this magazine in the 80's and 90's when it was called YM magazine. Having some issues of teen magazines meant the world to me because they were my source for information and inspiration. Kids today have had easy access to information in ways my teen self would have loved to have but happily found in teen magazines instead.

As I embark on this adventure as a newly christened mom of a 13 year I find myself wanting to look back at vintage teen magazines as a reminder of what it meant and means to be a teen. Of course so much has changed since 1966 like when this issue was printed or the time when I was a teen. But I think there are some things that remain the same for teens no matter what decade they lived in. Teens look for guidance, advice, fashion inspiration, dating tips, and ways to learn how to build their confidence.

This November 1966 issue of Young Miss Magazine included health tips, recipes, inspirational stories, fashion inspiration, an interview with a model who shares her makeup tips, and what shows are on television. The pages are filled with teen inspiration that just brings me straight back to those years. I love being able to look back at these pages and remember my own teen years and the things that were important me then. What teen magazines did you read when you were a teen?

I confess I loved getting my reading list when I was at school. especially in college. When I would get my list it just made me feel like it was all starting again. There was always this mix of excitement and nervousness in the air. You knew you were officially back to school.

A brand new reading list, new notebooks, freshly sharpened pencils, and of course a first day of school outfit. The new year has always felt like it began in September for me. After being a student I was a teacher for several years and now I help my children with their school work.  The new year still somehow starts in September although this year is going to be a little different.  We are going to start the new year a bit later than usual and we will be starting at home but I will be right by their sides to keep their lists in order, pencils sharpened, and laptops ready for daily lessons to be consumed.

If you are looking to do some learning yourself for this academic year I have some good back to school reading recommendations that I have read, loved, and reviewed. Simply click on the link of the titles of the books below and you can learn more about them.