“You are Lisa Simpson.” This is what’s written on the poignant note that Lisa’s beloved substitute teacher Mr. Bergstrom writes to her as he boards a train to be whisked away to another underpaid and underappreciated substitute teaching job. But Lisa does appreciate him, so much so she’s developed an intense crush on him. The Simpsons episode “Lisa’s Substitute,” which aired thirty-two years ago on April 25th, is surprisingly sentimental. Mr. Bergstorm (voiced by Dustin Hoffman) is witty, thoughtful, and charming. Like Lisa, he’s a nerdy iconoclast who challenges accepted beliefs and traditions. Lisa’s connection to him is more intellectual than romantic. He’s everything Lisa’s ever wanted in an adult role model, especially in a father. When Mr. Bergstorm reads the end of E.B. White’s Charlotte’s Web to the class, he, Lisa, and all of us watching are left in tears. But it’s his departure from Springfield that’s most gutwrenching. As he is about to board the train, Lisa arrives in a panic—she must stop him! Of course, she can’t stop him, but he does comfort her. In a moment of brilliance, Mr. Bergstorm scribbles a note for Lisa to look at whenever she feels alone.
“You are Lisa Simpson.” That’s it. That’s all he wrote. But it’s enough. It’s a simple and empowering message that she is enough. It’s also a reminder that our most intense crushes are often less about the person we desire and more about ourselves. Sometimes we don’t actually want to be with the object of our affection; we want to be them. And it’s in that powerful moment that many of us watching realized we, too, are Lisa Simpson.
If I could define the ideal reader of Moonbow, it would be Lisa. So I’m dedicating this month’s “5 Things” newsletter to her. How could I not be obsessed with a young feminist rebel who reads authors like Sylvia Plath, Maurice Sendak, Daniel Clowes, and Lewis Carroll? And whose favorite album is Birth of the Cool by Miles Davis? Or what about when she challenged the sexist “Malibu Stacy” Barbie doll by creating her own doll, “Lisa Lionheart,” who she claimed would have “The wisdom of Gertrude Stein, the wit of Cathy Guisewite, the tenacity of Nina Totenberg, the common sense of Elizabeth Cady Stanton. And to top it off, the down-to-earth good looks of Eleanor Roosevelt.” And I would add, “The heart of Lisa Simpson.”
I hope you enjoy watching some of my favorite Lisa Simpson moments and listening to my “Lisa Simpson Moon Dreams” playlist. This was the most fun “5 Things” newsletter I’ve made!
