Great Heights

I’m tall. I’ve been aware of this since 7th grade, when a basketball coach recruited me for the team despite my apparent lack of hand-eye coordination at tryouts. Even after I could only put two points on the board…the entire season, my coach still encouraged me to stay on the team because apparently my height inspired in him some uncanny faith in my potential (never to be realized on the court, mind you). And if that wasn’t enough, I never experienced a middle school slow dance in which my partner’s eyes were paired above my chest. Even today, I have witnessed my share of male expressions go from “tall and proud” to “nervous and emasculated” after I come down the stairs in my high heels. Alas, this is all just to describe my first point that I’m tall, and here in Mexico, I’m really tall.

However, it wasn’t until recently that I realized how blessed I am to be tall and how my height actually serves as a testimony to how fortunate I am. I’m currently reading a book titled, “Mexican Lives” by Judith Adler Hellman. In this particular excerpt, Hellman is speaking with a Mexican woman who sells lingerie and claims she sells it in all colors and sizes. When Hellman asks if she has any in her size, the vendora looks her over and laughs replying,

“You’re not ‘big,’ you’re tall. That’s different from being big. You’re tall because you’re well-nourished. That’s the difference between women here and norteamericanas or canadienses. We get to be fat because we go our whole life without eating proper food.”
(Hellman. Mexican Lives. Pg 84).

After reading this, you can bet I had an “elevated” point of view. Sincerely, as a person who basically grew up in the Natural Food Coop in Litchfield, I have always been surrounded by nutritious food. Every single day of my life I have had the option to include fresh fruits and vegetables in my diet. The same is true for my parents, and their parents as well. Thus, my family has had the opportunity to be tall. Up until this point, I have simply attributed my height to my genetic makeup. However, now, I see my height as more than a physical expresion. To me, my height is now a living example of how people can grow only when given the opportunity.