CHECK YOUR MIRRORS

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  • By Sue Jane Sullivan
    By Sue Jane Sullivan
  • First Day of School 1972
    First Day of School 1972
  • First Day of School 1973
    First Day of School 1973
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These past two weeks, many of you have participated in the ritual made for scrapbooks, framed desk photos, or Facebook: the First-Day-of-School picture. Besides the obligatory smiles on display, the photo's latest clothing styles make for a primary source treasure. Note the bell-bottoms and wide belt my older brother Scotty pulled off his senior year in 1972. My sister Sara commented that I was going for an Austrian folk dance outfit. Note that we sisters did wear dresses on the first day and often on other days. Casual t-shirts were not quite the norm in the early 70s for dress codes.

The second photo is one year later. Scotty was off to Abilene Christian University for his freshman year. We replaced him with the baby of the family, Sabrina, who now was old enough to join us for the FDOS photo. Mother told us that Sabrina was pretty ticked off those years when she was not allowed in the pictures. We tried to tell her she had no idea how lucky she was to still be in her pajamas and eating another bowl of cereal. Look at her face, far right, on Opening Day 1973--her first year of school. Her expression makes me think she finally understood that getting up early for school was not as magically delicious as Lucky Charms. This photo also shows our mom's seamstress skills, the return of the knee sock craze, and a free-for-all mixing of the printed shirt with plaid pants. (Shane was the First-Grade trendsetter).

For parents doing the math and in a similar situation with bookend children years apart, you can survive sending your baby to kindergarten and your firstborn to college in the same year.

Keep indulging us with those delightful faces and fashion trends in August or September. You might add last-day-of-school photos, too, for posterity. Those smiles are usually a lot bigger.

Remember, it does not matter one lick what your kids wear, what color their backpacks are, or if they even have one. Send them off with a positive word before they walk out the door. Set the tone for their day with encouragement. Please give them a reason to start every day with a smile.

Wishing you a 2020-2021 school year that goes smoothly