Being a mere 5 foot tall, I have throughout my adult life, often felt as though I have stepped into the pages of books such as “ The Borrowers” or “ Gullivers Travels in Lilliput”.

It has brought many challenges along the way, which only other petite people will understand:

 

 

Hard to reach things:

My diminutive stature makes it harder to reach things. Things used on a regular basis, in my kitchen are kept in lower level cupboards with a chair always close to hand to enable me to reach the top shelves or cupboards if necessary.

In the supermarket, where assistants can be difficult to locate, I can often be found climbing the shelves to reach things stacked high up on the top shelves. I’d probably be banned for breaching health and safety regulations if I got caught. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .But needs must.

Carrying heavy shopping bags can be a struggle, not due to lack of muscles, but due to the fact being short in height, also means your hands are closer to the floor, so I have to lift shopping bags up like kettlebells or they drag along the ground.  🛍

The struggle continues when we go on holiday. If I didn’t have a taller husband I’d be climbing on the seats to get my bag in the overhead locker.

Becoming a leaning post:

People seem to think it’s their right when standing next to you, especially in pubs, to rest their elbow on your shoulder.

Then there’s others who feel it’s hilarious to pat you on top of the head like a little puppy 🤬

Clothes:

My whole life I have had a battle to find clothes that fit properly. Even those described as petite are often ill fitting, sleeves that dangle off the end off my fingers, the shoulder seams sitting somewhere down my arm and waist bands falling nearer my hips.

Capri trousers become ankle grazers, dresses with hems that should sit above the knee, dangle around my shins, making me look like I’m back in my schools days, when Mum used to buy me clothes that I would “grow into”, hoping they would last me longer.

Cinema and theatres:

I love a trip to the theatre and the occasional visit to the cinema, but why is it that, no matter where I sit, someone from the Land of the Giants,  ALWAYS comes and sits directly in my line of view.

At festivals or standing concerts I tend to stand to the sides otherwise if I’m in the midst of the crowd, all I can see is peoples armpits as they wave their arms aloft and I’m far to old to be sitting on someone’s shoulders to get a clearer view.

Out and about:

AND don’t get me started about the London Underground. I can’t reach the overhead strap hangers (stop laughing) so I am jostled round between peoples armpits or unassuming ladies bosoms, trying to keep my balance by hanging onto my husband.

I don’t enjoy rides at theme parks, as the harnesses don’t make me feel very secure,  especially if the ride turns me upside down. Then there’s the embarrassment of having to check my size against the minimum height chart!

Rainy days can cause a logistical nightmare. Holding my brolly aloft, my fellow pedestrians constantly need to dodge out the way for fear of being poked in the eye by my prongs and the hoods, even on petite coats are so large they flop over my eyes, so I end up bumping into people.

Tall friends:

I love a walk, but I’ve had to learn to speed walk, as for every step my tall mates take, I have to take 2 or 3 just to keep up with them.

And on occasions I have been literally swept off my feet, once when I was struggling to see the stage and another time scooped up and placed on a garage roof to retrieve something. Fortunately I was carried down too & not just left up there!

Little legs:

Apart from often having to turn the hems of trousers up to stop myself tripping over them, little legs can be a hindrance for other things, like driving. Even in the smallest of cars, I need to have the seat so far forward to reach the peddles that the steering wheel is in my lap, and then I have to move the seat back to enable me to exit the car. Not great in the event of a crash and it doesn’t bear thinking about if the air bag should go off!

And who invented SUV’s? Just climbing aboard can be like a slapstick comedy 🙄 let alone sitting in the back seat of such BIG cars. The windows can be so high that I often feel the need for a child’s booster seat to be able to see something other than the sky and the tree tops as they whizz on by.

Chairs can also be a challenge, and I don’t mean bar stools (although I do need a hand to get on and off those ), if you were to peer under the table, you would see my legs dangling. So I find myself perching on the edge of chairs to enable my feet to reach the floor.

 

As you can tell being petite can, at times, be a challenge, meaning I have had to adapt the way I do things. 

In times gone by, everyone used to think I was younger than I was, and I always thought that would have benefits as I grew old. But it doesn’t seem to happen these days. Maybe its the grey hair that gives the game away

I am constantly reminded, I’m not a tall person, (as if I hadn’t realised 🙄)

However I prefer to think of myself not as being short but as being more

😂 Fun Size 😂