Growing up tall isn’t easy. Being the offspring from a 6-foot 5-inch tall father and a 5-foot 10-inch tall mother, I came out of the womb just... long. The thing was, I totally thought I was normal height until I started going to school. In kindergarten, I was the tallest kid. Not just the tallest girl, but the tallest one in the whole class of 20-something children.
In my mind, I was short. Let’s just say, it was awkward when I would try to be in the front row of a picture, and I got shooed to the back by a very angry photographer because I’d be blocking the heads of innocent short children. Embarrassing, right?
Middle school was a little better. Other guys started to sprout, although I still got the superlative of “tallest girl.” Sadly, even in high school, that never changed. Being 6’0” isn’t easy. The only easy part was my advantage in basketball.
Seriously, other girls would cringe the moment I walked on the court. Nobody wanted me to defend them because I was automatically labeled as "intimidating." I try to explain that I’m a “gentle giant,” but when they run away in the other direction, it’s hard to get the message across.
Many might not think that being tall would be such a hard thing to accept, but any girl over 5 feet 8 inches really does understand what I'm getting at here.
Shopping for clothes is the worst. Every pair of jeans we own turns into capris, and if they're long enough, they're too wide, but if they're slim enough, they're too short. We can't win. Not to mention that every dress we find will never cover our butt because our legs are too damn long.
Being in college, the struggles just increase. My feet always hang off the end of the twin bed, even if they do claim it's an "extra long." The comments also become more common, because being 6 feet tall is unheard of, I guess.
Forget about ever wearing heels to a party. In class, it's impossible to cross your legs under the desk. Oh, and on a rainy day, forget about it. Being whacked in the head with someone else's umbrella while walking by is an everyday occurrence.
In the end, as much as I think being tall is a bad thing most of the time, I’ve embraced it, really! Height is a blessing, as long as you view it that way. You are who you are, so accept it, "man hands."
